Thread: GSTA: Johto

The sequel to Gotta Steal Them All?

Summary: Sam is now in Johto hunting down Team Rocket three years later. During these three years, both sides have been planning and watching... Waiting for the other to make their move. So far, no one has moved. Riley has all but given all reins of control to Sam, now 20-years-old and he has done everything possible to ensure that Team Rocket thinks that the Guild has given up... And after these years of silence, Team Rocket finally emerges from the depths.

Genres: Action, Crime, Comedy and if Suspense is a real category- I'd say it fits that too. :D

Posting Schedule: One chapter a day.

Teen for: Language, dark tones, and mild sexual themes.

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1: Just below
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16

- Character Concept Art -
*This is the link to my deviantArt profile- or, truthfully, the link to the folder where all of my GSTA pictures are stored. You should know all the characters there by this point.

~Noteleks

No copyright infringement intended.
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It was night time in the city of Goldenrod. The night air was crisp and carried a chilly wind. Whitney wrapped her pink Clefairy sweatshirt around herself tighter and pulled up her hood with cute, little Clefairy ears attached. Grumbling and huffing to herself as she walked through the dark streets up to the radio tower. At the very top on the walkway around the dome, she found who she was looking for. He was leaning on the railing. His dark brown hair blowing in front of his handsome, tanned face.

She wrapped her arms around his chest. "Couldn't you at least leave me a note that tells me where you're going?"

His cold, brown eyes glared at her and he pushed her away. "I'm not interested in your company."

"Hmph... Fine," Whitney sniffed. She sat down by the dome and he resumed his earlier pose of leaning on the rail. "You're so cold, Sammy." He flinched slightly at the pet-name, but remained silent. "What are you doing up here anyway."

"Trying to get away from you."

"Well, too bad. The Thief Lord said that I was supposed to watch out for you while you were here. So-"

Sam cut her off by slamming his fist into the glass dome, furious. "I don't need a babysitter!"

Whitney cowered and teared up. "You can't take this out on me, I'm just following orders!" she sniffled.

"You're not looking out for me, its more like stalking," he growled back.

Whitney smiled. "I think we could be good friends," she flirted.

Sam rolled his eyes in open distaste. "How you ever came to be a captain is beyond me. I'm not interested."

"Whatever. It's been three years and you're still as bitter and cold as when you came," she got up and stormed off.

He turned to watch her as she left. Once he made sure she had actually gone, he pulled out his phone and returned the missed call.

"Matt, what have you found out?"

"You were right."

"Do you-" Sam began, but Matt cut him off.

"No. I'm sorry, Sam. I still don't know where any of them are. But, and this is a good, I promise-"

"It had better be," Sam warned flatly.

"Okay, well. Adriana was Giovanni's love interest if not wife. They had two kids. A daughter and a son."

"Do you know where they are?"

"The daughter was sent to an orphanage and eventually adopted by out-of-region parents. But their son is still in Johto. He is living with his foster parents."

"And you know where he is, I take it?" Sam said in a much happier tone of voice.

"Violet City, the boy is quite the troublemaker."

"Violet City, huh? That's not too far away."

"It's hard to say whether he'll still there or not, he has a habit of running away, it seems."

"Of course, runners are always fun."

"Yep. So are you going to make the report to the Thief Lord?"

Sam sighed, "I suppose. ... Matt?"

"Yeah?" Matt voice sounded apprehensive.

"Good work." He snapped his phone shut and stood by the railing. Suddenly, he whipped out a dagger and threw it with incredible speed and accuracy at a cutout of a red R. "Finally, three years later. I know you, Adriana; even if you don't care about your son, you'll care that something of yours is being threatened. You're possessive, and it will lead to your downfall. This is just the pawn I needed." He walked over to his dagger and yanked it out of the cutout. As he put the dagger back in its sheath, he kicked the R over the edge and watched it fall.

Heavy wing beats reached his ears- a large Noctowl was flying towards him carrying a message container. Sam took the container away from the Pokemon and look out the piece of paper- it was a picture of the Giovanni's son, the boy with red hair.
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Way back in Sinnoh, Riley was sitting in his office, head in hands. Steven was sitting in a nearby chair reading a book. Finally, Steven broke the long silence between them. "As your most trusted adviser, I advise you to stop thinking."

Riley stared at him. "What?"

"I said stop thinking. You're stressing yourself out."

"Oh."

Steven glanced at him. "Seriously. You look like shit. What has got you so moody all the sudden?"

"Nothing..." Steven made a face so Riley continued. "Fine, something... Sam."

"I thought he was behaving himself... Relatively."

Riley laughed. "He has, sorta. It's the 'sorta' part that is getting me."

Steven nodded sagely. "I stopped worrying about what he was doing and why an hour after I first met him, and my hair still turned gray. You better watch out."

"Your hair was always gray." Riley chuckled. "How old was he when you first met?"

"Seven, and he was trouble from the start. Ask Norman, he could tell you."

"It's been three years since he went to Johto... He's changed a lot."

"Yep. And don't get your hopes up out him giving up anytime ever."

Riley shook his head. "No, I given up on that hope. But... Do you think he'll go back to his old self once he gets Ditto back?"

Steven put his book down and looked at Riley directly. "No. Sorry, but our old friend is gone. Maybe if he'd found Ditto three years ago he would have been okay."

Riley sighed. "He's a trouble maker either way, I suppose."

"Hold up the depression train- I only said that he won't just snap back to that. Time did this to him and only time will undo it. I'm sure that eventually, he'll lighten up."

Riley was about to reply when his phone rang. "Speak of the devil- I'll put it on speaker... Sam?"

"I finally found... A little pawn we can use to our advantage."

"What do you mean by 'a little pawn'?" Riley asked suspiciously as he looked over at Steven.

"Adriana was Giovanni's love interest. They had two bastard children, one of them is still in Johto."

"Are you serious?"

"Dead serious."

"I mean, are you serious about using a child to lure them out?"

"I won't hurt him. Simply flaunt the fact that he's in danger."

Riley sighed. "Fine, whatever."

"So what's the verdict. Do you want any of your precious captains in on this?"

Steven nodded from across the room, Riley ignored him. "No. If this is the path you're going to take, you do not have my support or the support of the captains. You are on your own, Sam."

The other side of the line was silent. Steven gaped and then used various different hand gestures to try to communicate to Riley to take it back.

"A wise choice. However, the other thieves may not be so understanding. You will look like the bad guy to them, and I won't tell them otherwise."

Riley smiled slightly. "Wouldn't have it any other way. Good luck, you'll need it." He hung up the phone.

Steven was staring at him, completely confused. Riley gave him a look of mock-surprise. "Looks like the advised has surpassed the adviser."
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All across Johto, thieves were watching their phones carefully- each hoping that the meeting of the ring leaders would bring the good news they needed to hear. Many thieves lost Pokemon to Team Rocket before they 'disbanded' and 'disappeared.' These thieves formed a little syndicate of their own dedicated to hunting and eradicating Team Rocket. Unfortunately, the syndicate was disorganized and many weren't sure where to start at first. Eventually, a few thieves rose up and took control.

The ringleaders were five powerful thieves from the Kanto and Johto regions: Hayle, a rich thief from Blackthorn- A favorite among thieves for her looks as well as cunning. She'd lost her most precious Granbull and she would cut throat to get it back. Barrakus, a less successful thieve from Azeala Town. He was level-headed and offered more wisdom than vengeful wishes. His Steelix had been stolen and he missed it something fierce. Danatallion, a skilled, wealthy thief from Ecruteak. He funded and still owned half a share of the theater there; much to Morty's distaste. It was more due to the fact that he was possessive than that he actually cared that his Sentret was stolen. Tao was a cold, but beautiful thief who was Arthur's girlfriend before she found out that he was using her for information. Now she wanted blood and she was going to get it. When he betrayed the League and her, he took her Houndoom with him.

The unofficial leader was Sam. After everything he'd done in his thief career and the show down with Team Rocket, he'd become a legend. Everyone wanted to be on his good side. No one could argue that he was an intelligent in the field of battle strategy. If anyone could root out and eradicate Team Rocket, it was undeniably him. He'd been nicknamed among the underworld, 'The Hunter' and 'Scythe' derived from his fighting style and the fact that his trademark dual daggers were modeled after a Scyther's blades.

As usual, Sam was the one with all the useful information and the one laying out a plan of action, or inaction, depending on what seemed appropriate. A cry of outrage went up at the Thief Lord's refusal to aid their cause.

Barrakus had to pound on the table to regain order. Once the noise died down, Sam took the floor again.

"It doesn't matter if we have the Captains on our side or not. I've found something I can use to lure them out. Giovanni has a son and I know where we can find him."

"That's a lot of 'I's and not enough 'we's," Tao commented angrily.

Sam turned to her. "Yes, I will take care of it. You want revenge or Arthur, I get it, and when the time comes for someone to finally take him out, he's all yours. In the meantime, this game is between me and them. I'll call for you guys when I need you."

"We can help," Hayle said gently.

"I don't need help right now. There is no plan B. If plan A doesn't work then it's over. I don't have a third chance at this. I won't risk you screwing this up. This all has to go down a certain way."

"And you can do this all by yourself?" Danatalion asked sarcastically.

"I've done a pretty good job so far," Sam returned flatly. "As of right now, Team Rocket doesn't even know that we exist and they think I'm dead. That is our biggest asset right now."

"So why are you out there if they're supposed to think that you're dead?" Danatalion argued.

"They wouldn't recognize me and I don't intend to get caught. Look, if you want your Pokemon back or your revenge, let me take care of the prelude to fight."

The thieves turned to Barrakus for advice. He looked around and cleared his throat. "I understand where you're coming from, Sam. If you've got a plan, then you're the only one who does. I'm with you, just tell me what to do."

Slowly, the other thieves nodded their consent.

"Let me make something clear to you, though," Tao warned. "No one gets to take out Arthur but me."

"I had no intention otherwise," Sam returned cooly. Tao glared at him, but he ignored her and walked out. Outside, Matt was waiting for him.

Matt was not as tall as Sam and he was chubby. He had curly blonde locks of hair and always wore some type of green polo shirt that 'brought out the color of his eyes' as he always told Sam.

"So, how'd it go?" he asked hopefully.

Sam rolled his eyes and straightened his jacket. "Unfortunately, that could be considered 'better than expected'."

"Well, what's the plan now? What are we going to do with the boy?"

"He's in Violet City, right?" Matt nodded. "I suppose I'll just have to pay him a little visit," Sam said flatly.

"Got any other threads you want me to follow?"

"Not right now, we've got something good here. Let's hope it leads somewhere."
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Silver was packing his clothes quickly. He was beyond sick of the sages of Bell Tower. One of the sages there had taken him in as his son years ago, but the two had never gotten along. Silver wasn't interested in their peaceful mumbo jumbo, but his 'father' kept trying anyway. Silver had never gotten very far when he ran away before because he was scared of being attacked by wild Pokemon. He had a plan now; there was a way to get to New Bark Town without going through the wild grass. Unfortunately, he didn't have any other clothes beside his novice, sage, training uniform.

He descended the stairs of Bell Tower on socked feet so no one would hear him and escaped through the door. Once outside he tied on his running shoes and ran as far as he could before dawn came. The sages believed in the strength of the human body so he was able to run all the way to Cherrygrove City before stopping to walk. When he finally arrived in little, sleepy New Bark Town, he looked around carefully for anything or anyone suspicious. It was quiet enough, the laboratory was easy to pick out, but he was tired. He trudged over to the far corner of the lab and curled up on the ground there and fell asleep.

Only minutes later, he felt someone else's presence. Dazedly, he opened his eyes. A black, blood-stained combat boot was close to his face. Silver closed his eyes again and held his breath, hoping that who ever it was, wouldn't be the police. After counting to sixty and nothing happening, he opened his eyes again and looked around; no one was there. Not a trace that anyone had ever been there. Silver backed up closer to the wall. He still felt like someone was still around, but nothing stirred. He shivered and stayed awake for the rest of the night.
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Once the sun's rays reached the sky, the small town awoke. A girl with light brown hair and bright hazel eyes came flying out of her house with her Marill.

"Alright, Marill! Tag, you're it!" she shrieked happily as she touched the Marill. It puffed out its cheeks unhappily and chased after her as she skipped off. The energetic pair wove a fast path around almost every house in the small village. Sam watched stoically from his high vantage point in a nearby tree. Eventually, the Marill tagged the girl back and the game changed to hide-and-seek. Looking for the little blue Pokemon, the girl went into the side door of the laboratory.

Then the door to another house opened. It was a boy with dark indigo hair. The Marill accidentally ran into him while trying to hide in the house. The boy did not look pleased. When the girl came out of the lab and saw the Marill, they ran to each other and then off on their tag course again.

A quick glance showed Giovanni's son peering into the laboratory's window. Sam remained quietly sitting, his black clothing allowing him to blend almost perfectly with the dark foliage behind him. After a minute, the other boy came back out of the laboratory and the girl practically accosted him. The boy went into his house, presumably to talk to his mother and then left town. The girl ran into her house and returned with something in her hand. Sam watched her as she walked out into the wild grass. Once she found a Sentret, she threw the Poke Ball... and missed.

"Ugh! I know I can do this! C'mon Lyra, you got this!" she picked up the Poke Ball looked for another Pokemon to catch. Sam watched for awhile in amusement before intervening.
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"Need some assistance?" A man's voice came from behind her.

Lyra wheeled around, startled. She'd never seen the guy before in her life and he seemed to appear out of nowhere. "What? Me? No! I-" he gave her mildly sarcastic look. "Okay... Maybe a little."

He walked closer to her and held out his gloved hand for the Poke Ball. "May I?" She handed it to him and watched as he turned the small white ring around the round white latch. "You have this Poke Ball set on release. To catch a Pokemon, it needs to be on this symbol. Now, all you have to do is throw the ball once you weaken a Pokemon."

He started to hand it back to her, she bit her lip and blushed as she looked at the ground. "Could you... Maybe demonstrate... Please?"

"Sure, pick a target."

Lyra pointed at Sentret down the road and looked up at him. "That one?"

"No problem," he said with confidence. Then he held up his right hand and clenched it in a fist. Lyra only felt a slight breeze as a Scyther shot by and tackled the Sentret. It immediately rolled out of the way and the stranger threw the Poke Ball with force and accuracy. It flashed and the Sentret was taken inside the little ball. The Poke Ball shook and then latched- signifying a successful catch.

Lyra stared at him open-mouthed. He noticed her gaping and pat her on the shoulder. "You'll get the hang of it." He strode over to the Poke Ball, picked it up, and brought it back to her.

"Thank you, sir! I wanted to teach Ethan something to help him out with his Pokemon journey, but I needed some help myself," she admitted sheepishly.

"It's okay. Just keep practicing, you'll get better at it."

He turned to walk back into New Bark, Lyra bit her lip and scuffed her shoes in the dirt. "Um... Do you have any extra Poke Balls I could have to practice with?" Wordlessly, he disappeared and came back with a bag. Still silent, he dumped a giant pile of Poke Balls on the ground.

She stared at the pile in astonishment, when she looked up to thank the stranger, she found that he was gone. Startled, she ran into town looking for him. The boy with the red hair ran past her in a huge rush.

She put her hands on her hips and shook her head. "Well, we get the weirdest visitors here in New Bark, don't we, Marill."
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AN: Lyra is not the gym-junkie because I need her sweet and innocent and Ethan has to be the gym junkie for another storyline necessity. (May will be the gym junkie next, in case you were wondering.)

Thanks to Foonator, my beta and Soulmaster, who always catches my typos.

Chapter 2 coming soon to a fan fic near you...

Nice way of portraying Lyra. I wish we know more about Matt though.
As for the typos...

He descended the stairs of Bell Tower on socked feet so no one would hear him and escaped through the door. Once outside he tied on his running shoes and ran as far as he could before dawn came. The sages believed in the strength of the human body so he was able to run all the way to Cherrygrove before stopping to walk. When he finally arrived in New Bark he looked around the sleepy town. It was quiet enough, the laboratory was easy to pick out, but he was tired. He trudged over to the far corner of the lab and curled up on the ground there and fell asleep.

These aren't mistakes but at least for New Bark I think Town should also be there. Cherrygrove is fine just depends if you do it one way for consistency.

Originally Posted by Soulmaster

Nice way of portraying Lyra. I wish we know more about Matt though.
As for the typos...

He descended the stairs of Bell Tower on socked feet so no one would hear him and escaped through the door. Once outside he tied on his running shoes and ran as far as he could before dawn came. The sages believed in the strength of the human body so he was able to run all the way to Cherrygrove before stopping to walk. When he finally arrived in New Bark he looked around the sleepy town. It was quiet enough, the laboratory was easy to pick out, but he was tired. He trudged over to the far corner of the lab and curled up on the ground there and fell asleep.

These aren't mistakes but at least for New Bark I think Town should also be there. Cherrygrove is fine just depends if you do it one way for consistency.

Oh, Lyra... You haven't seen anything from her yet. My beta hated Lyra until she read my story and now she loves her. She said the Lyra was probably the greatest humor outlet in this installment. And you'll learn plenty about Matt soon enough.
Well... I decided to fix the 'town' thing... But then I had 'town' twice in the same sentence so I reworded it afterwards. ;)

Well it's Cherrygrove City so that is a bit of a problem there.

Originally Posted by Soulmaster

Well it's Cherrygrove City so that is a bit of a problem there.

Ha ha... I knew that. Though- it really isn't much of a city.

True but it is one.

No copyright infringement intended.
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Silver hugged the stolen Pokémon to his chest. He did feel somewhat bad about stealing from the professor, but he couldn't work up the nerve to ask him. Plus, he wasn't sure that the professor would have even given him one.

"No matter what, now, this Pokémon is mine... Yeah! We'll be unstoppable! I'll become strong and prove to everyone that I can be the champion! I'll need a team of powerful Pokémon, that's all that matters." The strong scent of flowers assailed him as he got closer to Cherrygrove City. As he looked up, he saw the boy from New Bark Town rushing out. Silver stopped him abruptly; the boy stared at him with surprise.

"You got a Pokémon at the Lab. What a waste. That's a Pokémon that's too good for a wimp like you... Don't you get what I'm saying? Well, I too have a good Pokémon. I'll show you what I mean!" With that, the boy released his Totodile.

Sam watched the proceedings of the battle intently, measuring the level of talent the two displayed. Unfortunately for the boy with the cap, Giovanni's son had caught him unaware and unprepared. The battle was close, but the Totodile won out. Needless to say, the boy displayed a strong sense of love and care towards his Cyndaquil, something Sam respected. Giovanni's son was predictably ruthless with his Pokémon.

"That apple did not fall far from the tree," Sam muttered under his breath.

"Do you want to know who I am? ... I'm going to be the world's greatest Pokémon trainer."

As the Giovanni's son left with a forceful shove, the boy bent down to pick up his fainted Pokémon. As he knelt he picked up something else; a white card. Giovanni's son came flying back spouting some garbage about his name being known as he went humorously pale. Once again, he just flew off after taking the card back.

The boy just stared after him with a blank look. With a shrug, he picked up his Cyndaquil and rushed to the Pokémon Center. Sam allowed a larger distance between him and his target as he pulled out his cell phone.

"Hey, hey! What's up, Sam? How is it going with the kid?" Matt greeted cheerfully.

"He's predictable. What's the kid's name again?"

"Umm, Silver? ... Yeah, Silver. Weird, huh? You'd think-"

"I think it doesn't matter that much."

Matt sighed, "Fair enough. Need anything else?"

"No-" Sam stopped as he spotted a Ledyba attacking Silver and a thought occurred to him. "Wait, do you have a bug we can track him with? Maybe something we can install in his phone?"

"Uh, yeah. Hang on; I can get one booted up for you. It'll take me a few hours but I can do it. When do you need it?"

"Soon, I can't just keep following him all the time. Meet me in Violet City to deliver it. The timing should work out."

"No problem. I'll show you how to work it when I get there. Then I'm assuming you've got some way to get to the kid's phone?"

"I always have a plan."

Matt rolled his eyes on the other side of the line and 'hmphed'. "Apparently. Well, see you later then."

Sam snapped his phone shut and stared at Silver who was still trying to offset the attacking Ledyba. He shook his head in disbe "It's going to be a long morning..."
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True to Sam's prediction, it took Silver a long time to make it back to Violet City. Once Silver went into the Pokémon Center for a short break, Sam found Matt.

"Alright, here you go." He handed the small chip to Sam and instructed him in its use. "It fairly simple, all you have to do is insert this chip into the battery, like this, and we're set."

"That's all?" Sam asked him, somewhat incredulous.

"That's all." Matt grinned happily.

Sam stared at him. "What are you so happy about?"

"So about Whitney..."

"Don't even go there."

Matt went on, "She's been moping ever since you turned her down..."

"Good, maybe she'll be too busy moping to stalk me then."

Matt put his hands on his hips. "What's your problem? She's cute! I think it's adorable that she's that obsessed with you."

"Don't you have something else to do?" Sam returned, irritated.

"Not unless you give me something else to do," Matt shrugged.

Silver happened to walk out of the Pokémon Center at a strange time. He heard the two men arguing before he actually saw them. One was wearing almost all black and the other a green polo shirt with khaki shorts. They had unknowingly attracted a sizable amount of attention. The people listening in could only decipher that a woman was involved, the guy in black was irritated, and the young man in green was the one who started it.

"Stop being to cold all the time! It wouldn't kill you to be nice to the girl, you know."

The man wearing the black walked closer to the other and stared him down, and growled, "You know, I could easily beat the shit out of you and I wouldn't feel bad about it for a second."

"Ya know what?" the one in the green announced, "I am going right back home and I'm not ever going to pester you about this ever again!" He laughed nervously and fled. Several of the women around giggled and sent the remaining guy coquettish looks. He ignored them as he straightened his jacket. Without a word he brushed past Silver, stealing the unknowing boy's phone as he passed.

Silver stared after him in admiration. Now, he's strong! I bet he's gym leader somewhere... Or even champion! The man wasn't overly tall, but he was not short; he wasn't huge, but he was lean and possessed sinewy muscle; and his clothes hinted that he had plenty of money to back his ventures up. Someday, I'll challenge him to a fight. But for now... Silver touched the Poké ball with Totodile in it as he glanced uneasily at Sprout Tower. "I can do this," he reassured himself out loud.

After checking to make sure he also had his Ghastly and Zubat, he took a calming breath and headed into Sprout Tower.
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Sam leaned against the gym; he hadn't necessarily expected the kid to go into the Sprout Tower. Now he had to wait for him to come back out so he could slip the phone back in the kid's pocket. He watched the other boy from New Bark walk past from the shadows and he'd seen the girl flying around town as well. As he stood quietly, the sun's last rays were flitting through the tree line.

"If it isn't Sam! What brings you to my neck of the woods?" Falkner asked lightly after stepping outside the Gym.

Sam shrugged. "My little investigation."

Falkner laughed dryly and nodded. "Right. We were told by the Thief Lord that your 'little investigation' was your problem alone and that we weren't supposed to get involved."

"Yeah, I knew before you did," Sam yawned, disinterested.

"Any idea why? It's not like I'm going to directly defy his orders but- I don't understand why we're the ones being shut down." Falkner shrugged.

Sam gave him a sarcastic look. "You make it sound like you'd help if you hadn't been 'ordered' not to."

Falkner looked offended for a moment before slowly nodding. "Fair enough, I suppose. I never heard the full story about what happened in Kanto, but I heard about the captains and all of their 'helpfulness'."

"That's a mild way of putting it," Sam commented dryly. "How's the old man?"

"Crazy. Sits in his chair all day with feathers stuck in his hair and wings attached to his rocking chair so he can 'fly'."

Sam smiled in amusement. "Reminds me of a certain old woman... Did you ever meet Madame Widow? She's as crazy as she is old."

Falkner made a face. "I vaguely remember her. I heard she's gotten even crazier recently."

Sam laughed dryly. "You should find some way for your father and her to meet up. I'm sure they'd get along great."

"Not funny... So not funny." Falkner shook his head.

Sam watched Silver reappear in front of the entrance to the old tower. "You better get back to your gym. There are some challengers around."

"I see... Take care of yourself, Sam." Falkner walked back in his gym, Sam disappeared into the shadows and as Silver walked by, he gently, but quickly slipped the phone back in the Silver's bag. With his mission accomplished, Sam turned his back to Silver and watched the wavering reflections in the clear pond's surface.
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Lyra and Marill were having a grand time playing tag in the unfamiliar town. The sun had set and with the moon shining, the pair became even more energetic. Inhabitants of the traditional town watched in good humor- no one was really bothered by extra life they brought with them.

In their frenzy of running, neither Lyra nor Marill noticed the dark figure standing in front of the pond until it was too late to stop.

Marill was going to dive into the water; instead, she slammed into the man's leg instead. He almost lost his balance but caught himself. Lyra knew that he was there now, but she had too much momentum to stop herself. She slammed into his back and that was enough to send all three into the water with a big splash.

Lyra floundered in the icy water, trying unsuccessfully to reach the surface. She, like most people, could not swim. Marill found her and managed to pull her up for air. Terrified of drowning, Lyra clung to Marill's buoyant tail as the small Pokémon tried to drag her to safety.

The tail wasn't quite enough to hold her up. One of the sages from the tower was trying to get a rope and the townspeople gathered worriedly around the edge. Just as she was about to sink again, a strong arm grabbed her. Someone pulled her over to the bridge and between the monk and him; they got her out of the water.

"Are you okay," the monk asked, concerned, as he wrapped a towel around her.

"I'm okay." Lyra blushed with embarrassment, then her eyes went wide,

"Oh, no! My bag! I must have lost it in the water!" Then she noticed that whoever was helping her was gone. She looked around for him. Moments later, he hauled himself out of the water and dropped her sopping wet bag next to her.

"Thank you so much! I'm so sorry! I knocked you in the water and you still..." she sneezed and shivered. The night air was no longer invigorating, just cold.

He stared down at her, his hair dripping in front of his strangely familiar, young, and notably handsome face. "It's not a problem, but you really should be more careful."

"Yessir," she responded meekly. He nodded in acknowledgment, and slicked his hair back out of his face.

A nurse scurried up carrying another towel. "Are you two okay? Come on to the Center, you'll catch the pneumonia if you stay out in the cold like this."

Lyra nodded and stood up and followed beside her rescuer. She deliberated asking him his name, but decided against it. Once they got inside, the nurse went and found them simple gray sets of clothes to change into.

Warmer and dry now, Lyra went walked out to the lounge. The guy who saved her was already there and had set both their shoes near the fire and placed her bag there as well to dry.

Not used to silence and somber atmospheres, Lyra felt the need to talk. "So... You can swim?"

He sent her a quick glance from the chair he was sitting in across the room. "I always thought it was a useful skill to have."

Lyra blushed in embarrassment. "Yeah... Maybe swimming lessons would be something to try." She looked over at him; he looked quite a bit different in plain gray clothes. Then she noticed that he was had a bandage and a fingerless glove on one hand that he was rubbing gently.

"Well... Oh! I should introduce myself! My name is Lyra and this is Marill," she exclaimed happily.

"Nice to meet you."

"Aren't you going to tell me your name?"

"Sorry, sweetheart, but no."

"Then I'll make up a name for you," Lyra bounced happily in her chair as she pondered it, "Hmmm,... How about, 'Mr. Violet'? Because you saved me in Violet City?"

He stared at her with an amused expression, then just shook his head. "Whatever, I guess."

Lyra giggled happily. "Okay... Mr. V!" Marill clapped her little paws, influenced by her master's delight. Half an hour later, Lyra found herself dozing off. She'd sneezed a gazillion times and was feeling a little sick. Mr. V hadn't complained, coughed, sneezed or shivered. Occasionally, he would rub at his chest like something was causing him pain, but for the most part he kept messing with his hand.

Through half-closed eyes, she saw Marill approach him and sniff at the gloved hand. Finally, the nurse came back in. She saw Mr. V rub at his chest and an expression of concern was clear on her face and in her voice. "Are you okay? Are you having trouble breathing?"

"No." She looked confused by the flat answer so he elaborated, "It's just an old injury that tends to act up. It's nothing new."

"Oh, okay." she glanced at his hand, "Is your hand-"

"Previous injury."

"Okay... Your clothes should be dry now," she informed with a cheery smile. Immediately, he got up, took his boots, and left.
__________________________________________________
It wasn't long after that the Sam was back in Goldenrod. Unlike most people, any thief could pass the 'wiggly tree' with ease. It was almost midnight then. Matt had returned to his apartment overlooking the sea to the south after arguing with Sam. Now he had his favorite music station playing and was all but dancing in his chair as he played with various different tech programs on his computer. He almost jumped out of his skin when someone started pounding impatiently on his front door.

As soon as he unlocked his front door, it slammed open and Tao stormed inside.

"Can I help you?" Matt asked with tact.

Tao scowled. "Where the hell is Sam?"

Matt stared at her; she glared back. "Why? What makes you think I know? It's not like he lives with me," Matt returned.

"You're his friend aren't you?" Tan shot back venomously.

"Yeah, so? He has his own place around town. The best I can offer is to pass along a message," Matt suggested as he put his hands up in mock surrender. Tao wasn't exactly known for her kindness.

Tao scowled angrily as she tapped her heel on the floor as she glared at him. "Fine. Tell him I want to talk to him."

Matt gave her funny look. "What, like a social visit? At midnight? Girl... Good luck with that."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Matt gave a pointed stare at her thigh-high leather boots, skin-tight jeans, and cleavage. "Honey, no body asks for a business call with a guy like Sam at midnight."

Embarrassment and anger flushed her cheeks. "What? What do you mean 'a guy like him', you-"

"Tall, dark, and handsome. Need I say more? I'm not judging, I'll tell him you said 'hi'."

"Fine, but if you breath a word about this-" Tao took a step closer.

"I won't tell a soul. Your secret is safe with me," Matt tactfully reassured her.

With a final, threatening glare, she stormed out. Matt went back to playing with his computer and half and hour later, Sam showed up.

"Sam! What's up?" Matt called from his desk.

"What the hell happened to your door? It looked like someone attacked it."

"Tao happened."

"That explains the dents. What did she want?" Sam asked as he took a chair beside Matt.

Matt looked at him with a wide grin "You."

"What?"

"You. She said she wanted to talk to you, though it was clearly not a business discussion. Which is kinda weird you know... She's what, twenty-four? And you're nineteen."

"Twenty."

"What? You are not... No, you aren't because you were sixteen when you came here and it's been three years!"

"Actually, I was seventeen. Birthday."

"Oh... So, I missed you birthday again?"

"They are an annual thing," Sam responded flatly.

"When is your birthday?"

"Recently."

Matt 'punched' him in the shoulder. "That is not what I meant. I want the actual date."

"I don't know either. My parents abandoned me when I was young. All I know is that it's somewhere in the first half of June."

Matt went back to playing with his computer slowly. "I'm sorry... I-"

"What?" Sam interrupted, slightly amused. "Didn't mean to pry? Spare me; you always stick your nose in other people's business. It doesn't bother me much anyway."

Matt shrugge., "Well, anyway. Are you going to go see Miss Tao?"

Sam glared at him. "Why are you always digging into my personal life?"

Matt considered the question. "You're right, it's not fair that we always talk about you. Well, let's talk about me since you've made it perfectly clear that you don't want to share. I saw Bill today and-"

"Absolutely not. I don't want to hear about that."

Matt smiled. "Then, are you going to go see Tao?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "I don't know. Probably not, she's not really my type, okay?"

Matt squinted at him. "She's not your type?"

"No."

"Hmmm... So that means that you've turned down Whitney, the sweet little girl type and Tao, the ultimate bad-ass... So your type of girl must be sugar and spice and everything nice," Matt stated sagely. Sam sighed with impatience. Matt went on, "But wait... There was also this saucy rumor about you and Daisy... Though according to the rumors, nothing ever happened between you two. Which is sad, Daisy's sweet and nice. I guess she's lacking in spice?" He turned to Sam for confirmation of his theory.

"You know, I came here for a reason."

Matt shrugged. "True, you don't come to visit me very often. Watcha need?"

Sam pulled out his cell phone and set it in front of Matt. "Water-damage. Fix it."

"Okay. Anything else?"

"No." Sam got up and left before Matt could ask another question. The air outside was freezing. He pulled his jacket a little tighter and shoved his hand into his pocket to keep it warmer. He walked through the dark streets alone for a while before returning home, unaware of the storm brewing in the farthest depths of the underworld as Team Rocket prepared returned to the surface.
__________________________________________________
AN: Capitilo dos... Ha! Spanish~ Moving on- Still setting the stage at this point. Chapter 3 will have a little flashback in it... And yeah... After that, the story really starts rolling. ;)

Thanks to my beta: Foonator - and Soulmaster.

Matt is awesome I think he is becoming my favorite character!!
I will just cut to the chase and say I didn't see any mistakes. (I am practically asleep so not very creative with my way f telling you that.)

Lol... I love Matt. He's so funny. X) Lyra is funny too. You haven't seen her at her best quite yet.

I was wondering where that spoiler was. :| Actually, not doing it was a great way to catch me off guard. I searched the whole message for it, even though it was obviously not there.

Originally Posted by Noteleks

I was wondering where that spoiler was. :| Actually, not doing it was a great way to catch me off guard. I searched the whole message for it, even though it was obviously not there.

Wow so I need to mix my ways up of telling you. Hmmm?

Originally Posted by Soulmaster

Originally Posted by Noteleks

I was wondering where that spoiler was. :| Actually, not doing it was a great way to catch me off guard. I searched the whole message for it, even though it was obviously not there.

Wow so I need to mix my ways up of telling you. Hmmm?

... ... Ha ha ha... Nah, I like the spoiler ^^' ... Yep. :)

No copyright infringement intended.
*Scythe=Sam. It's his thief nickname.
_________________________________________________________________________
After fleeing Kanto, the four executives and the remains of Team Rocket hid in the only safe house they had in Johto. It was an old laboratory, but it was good enough for their purposes. With all their stolen Pokemon moved there, the operation had long since been set up and running again. The Guild had remained oddly silent and passive through the years.

Proton had become even more bitter and cruel after his confrontation with Sam. As far as most grunts knew, it was because he had wanted to kill Sam himself, but the caving in building had killed Sam instead. The truth was known only to him and the select few that had escaped with him.

Archer did not take the direct seat left by Giovanni, but he did become their leader. He was Giovanni's right-hand man and as much as many feared Proton, they didn't want him in charge. Archer lead wisely enough as far as the public opinion went; they weren't dead yet. That counted for something in their book.

Petrel had managed to perfect his impersonations and had proved himself a valuable asset. He never said anything about Sam. Archer could sense his loyalty dying, and was somewhat concerned. It was obvious that the only reason Petrel hadn't turned them all in was because it would not cut him a deal with the thieves. The current Thief Lord, whoever he was, had laid down the law and he didn't make deals with those who broke it.

Ariana fashioned a nice little niche of power for herself. Most of the Rockets didn't know that she was the wife of Giovanni. Even fewer knew that she'd had children with him. Over the years, she'd heard about how her love had escaped the clutches of the thieves. She had ears enough to even know that her son, Silver, had aided Giovanni for a short time. The boy had run in the end, but she reasoned that he was young and didn't understand the goals of Team Rocket.

She'd beguiled herself into believing that if she could talk to her son, he'd join Team Rocket and he could be an executive and heir to the black throne. It seemed that Giovanni had finally accepted his son and thus, he would want him involved in his family's brainchild. The whole operation was started many generations ago, but the cruelest and wiliest ruler of the legion was undoubtedly Giovanni's mother. By killing her husband, she'd taken control of the vast black market empire. In her care, the operation had remained a secret and flourished. Giovanni had eventually taken power, as his father's will had wished for when he turned 30, and he was the one who wanted to make his reign known, and it had almost ruined them. His mother, called 'Madame', had ridiculed him for his decision and disappeared. Ariana couldn't help but admire Madame as much as she hated her for making life hell for Giovanni.

Power hungry and even further corrupted by time, she was now trying to find her son. She'd been having little success, but her fortunes finally changed.

"I need to leave the base, now," Ariana demanded.

Archer sighed, "How many times do I have to tell you? We're safe as long as we stay hidden? I don't want you to go out there and rain down hell on us. What is so important, anyway?"

"Giovanni's dreams. You know he's still alive... He's probably just waiting for us to continue his work so he can return safely!"

"Well, isn't that just peachy for Giovanni? He's safe in hiding and we're supposed to get ourselves killed trying to do his job for him?"

Ariana slapped him across the face. "How dare you speak badly of him! Giovanni is- This was not his fault! It was Proton who did this!"

Archer rubbed at his red cheek and frowned. "Proton? What did he do?"

"By 'getting us killed'- you're obviously talking about the Guild. Proton was the one who advocated stealing that nightmarish Ditto from Sam and look what happened!"

"No one could have foreseen Sam just snapping like that! And what does is matter anyway? The kid died when Pokemon Mansion collapsed. There's no way he could have survived," Archer protested.

"Exactly, but he had powerful friends in the Thief world. Captains and Generals alike. Everyone knows that General Steven and Sam were like father and son. You should have listened to Petrel- he was right all along. We never should have taken that Ditto," Ariana fumed.

"Oh, come on... Alright, fine. It was a bad idea, but what do you want me to do about it now? We're so close to creating a Mew. Just what exactly do you want me to do?"

"Let me leave... And Proton as well. There's been a demand for Slowpoke Tails among black market clients," Ariana pointed out evenly. "We need to get some money, and I'm out of your hair for a little while."

Archer glared at her distrustfully. "As nice as it would be to have you away from here, I still don't know what your motives are. You tell me what you intend to do, and I'll let you go."

Ariana stamped her foot and almost screamed in impatience; Archer raised his eyebrows at her childish outburst. "Fine! I think I've found my son. If I can talk to him, he could join us and be stronger than any our grunts."

Archer folded his arms across his chest. "Your son? Arceus, Ariana, he's probably as hot-headed as you are! He didn't help Giovanni- what makes you think he'll be any more useful now?"

"He was just young and he didn't understand our motives. I can talk to him and he'll understand."

Archer put up his hands in surrender, seeing no point in fighting her any more. "Fine. Fine. Go do whatever. But if you come back with enemies on your trail, I'm not going to help you."

"I don't need your help," she sneered as she strutted away.

Archer rolled his eyes. "No wonder Giovanni tried to send you as far away from him as possible."
_________________________________________________________________________
Ariana found Proton surrounded by clamoring fan girls. He, of course, enjoyed the attention. He waved them off when he saw Ariana.

"What?"

"You and I have a mission."

Proton shrugged. "Okay, But I thought Archer was too much of a pansy to go outside?"

"Let's just say I convinced him." Ariana smirked.

Proton smiled. "I believe that. What's the mission?"

"Pretty easy work. There's a well in Azalea Town that is home to a large portion of the Slowpoke population. Since there's been a demand for SlowpokeTails, he wants you to cut some off for profit."

"That's my mission?" Proton sniffed in distaste.

"Yes, all in the name of Giovanni, of course," Ariana countered his implied refusal with tact.

"Of course. I'll get a team ready." Proton sneered.

Ariana nodded curtly and left him. Both executives were ready to go in a matter of hours. Proton had his hand-picked team ready for travel and she'd packed her bag with what she'd need; a weapon in case something happened, a set of dark colored clothes for hiding, and a set of normal clothes for during the day.

They left their secret base on the backs of Golbat and Crobat. Sailors looking up only saw a dark flock making its way toward the homeland.
_________________________________________________________________________
The sages of Bell Tower watched the same flock pass over their heads.

Silver's adoptive father shook his head sadly. "If only he'd listened. All is lost now."

"Not yet." the elder's old voice cut through their murmurs of agreement. "We are not the only ones watching."

"Who else is there, elder?"

"The other sage towers will not get involved in worldly affairs."

"The gym leaders haven't lifted a finger against outside forces."

More soft mutterings of consent filled the room. "There is another." A hush fell upon the room. "A powerful spirit of vengeance who has been watching for a long time with a legion of followers to back him up. His blades will reach them and his revenge against them knows no bounds." A younger sage came carrying the revered Noctowl of the Elders. The old sage wrapped a scroll to the old owl's talons and with a gesture of his hand, the bird flew off into the night.
_________________________________________________________________________
Ariana soon found that locating her son was harder than she anticipated. All she had to go on was that he'd run away from home again- though whether he lived in Violet City or Azalea Town was still unclear. She scoured Violet City first, but couldn't find a trace of her son anywhere. After searching through Azalea Town and finding nothing, she made a mistake that would cost her dearly; she put up posters for her lost son.

A young woman with caramel-colored skin and auburn hair saw the posters and made a phone call immediately. Ariana saw her and thought she might know something.

"Excuse me, do you know anything about my son?" Ariana asked with a pleading look in her eyes. She knew how to act.

The woman stared at her quietly before holding a finger for a moment, she spoke to the person on the other side of the phone. "Oh, the boy's poor mother is here. Do you know anything that I can pass on to her?"

Ariana let some crocodile tears spill down her cheeks as she smiled gratefully. The young woman smiled as if to say 'you're welcome' as she listened to the person on the phone. After some time, she hung up and turned to Ariana. "I might know where you can find your son!"

"Oh, thank you so much! You're so sweet! My name is Ana."

"Anything I can do to help! My friend says that he might have seen a boy like that in Goldenrod."

Ariana's face fell a bit. "Goldenrod is big city."

"He said to check around the southern underground entrance at night. I hope you find your son."

Ariana smiled brightly. "Thank you so much!" Excited by the glimmer of hope, she ran off.

The young woman watched her with amusement before pulling out her phone again. "She believed me and she's heading your way as we speak."

A man's voice answered. "Excellent work, Lizeth."

She chuckled. "You can call me Zeth. I honestly thought that she wouldn't go for it. 'By the underground at night' is the most suspicious thing I've ever heard!"

There was a dry laugh. "Perhaps, but I know her and she's as hot-headed as they come."

"Yep. Well, is there anything else I can do for you, Scythe? Any plans?"

After a slight pause, he responded. "There's been word circulating that Slowpoke Tails are a new fad in the black market. Team Rocket is sure to get involved... Keep an eye out, it'll probably be Proton."

"I'll call you if I hear anything." Sam apparently took that as goodbye and hung up. She slipped her phone back into the pocket of her tan cargo shorts. The night was a little cold, but she was wearing an orange v-neck sweater. Zeth leaned against a tree and put her large red and gold headphones on and started listening to her music. Another girl in dressed in dark jeans and dark blue t-shirt came up beside her and leaned against the tree.

Zeth slipped her headphones off again. "Hey, Tobi."

"Hey, so did you see those posters with the red-headed dude on it?" There was a triumphant look on the girl's face as she played with the dark blue bandanna around her neck coyly.

"Yeah, and I already called Scythe, so there."

Tobi scrunched up her nose. "I wanted to call him!"

"I know, I'm such a meanie head, huh," Zeth sighed with a cheerful grin.

Tobi didn't find it all that funny. "Hmph... Is he going to come here? I've heard so many stories about him; I want to know what he looks like!"

"Then I guess we'd better hope that Proton is here. Otherwise, Scythe has his hands full with a certain red-headed psycho." Zeth winked at Tobi as she put her headphones back on. Tobi smiled and flounced away.
_________________________________________________________________________
Ariana had put on her dark clothes and stood in the shadows waiting for her son to arrive. Finally, she heard footsteps heading toward her. As they got louder and closer she realized that the footsteps could not possibly belong to her eleven-year-old son. They were light and deliberate footsteps that belonged to long stride.

Nervous, she put her hand on her dagger. "Who's there?" The footsteps stopped, but no one answered her. "I said who's there! Come out where I can see you!" She spun around, searching her surroundings for anyone. Finally, the person stepped into the street light to the north. The soft light showed the silhouette of a man wearing a hood and all black. The light caught the buckles and leather throughout his attire. More importantly, the moonlight was reflecting off the large dual daggers.

Ariana held out her own, small dagger. "I don't know who you are, but don't you dare come any closer!"

She heard his dry chuckle as he pulled down his hood. "What? You don't recognize me?" She squinted at his face, trying to identify the person. He shook his head and his voice lost the joking undertone. Now it was just cold and deadly. "I'm your worst enemy."

Before she even had time to react, he rushed her. The force slammed her into the ground. Still laying on the ground, she attempted to bring up her own dagger to defend herself; there was a metallic clink. With horror, she watched the blade of her dagger fall to the ground. Like every villain and bully, she was a coward at heart and when faced with someone stronger than her, she fell apart.

"Don't kill me, please! I'll do anything you want!" she sobbed.

He came closer and knelt down in front of her. Using his dagger, he lifted her chin so she was looking at him. "Kill you? Please... You will be a valuable asset to me, Adriana." His voice was dangerous purr. As she stared at him, she slowly began to recognize him.

"S-Sam? No, it can't be! You died in the rubble... Pokemon Mansion collapsed on you!"

He smirked, a cruel glint in his eyes as he spoke softly. "I'll bet that's what Proton told you. You know, he begged me not to kill him, just like you. His Gengar is what saved him, nothing more."

"What are you going to do with me?" she sniffled.

"Nothing, really." He shrugged. "As much as I'd love to kill you, I need you to let me know the whereabouts of Team Rocket."

"I'm not going to tell you anything!"

He pulled out a small chip as he laughed cheerfully. "Of course not! That's what this is for. Hold still, this won't hurt too much." She tried to punch him or anything to deter him, but Sam was faster. She barely felt the quick blow to the head that ended her struggles in darkness.
_________________________________________________________________________
Petrel and Archer were both lazily meandering the halls of their hideout when Archer's phone rang.

"Its Ariana...? Hello?" He listened for a sound, but all he heard was her phone hit the ground like she'd dropped it. "Ariana? Ariana!" There was just soft breathing on the other side of the line. Archer kept his phone open. "Petrel! Run and get a tech grunt! I think Ariana is in trouble, we need to trace this call immediately!"
_________________________________________________________________________
Soon enough, Archer arrived in Goldenrod. It was still night, but he could see her lying in the back of an alley. He ran to her and checked to make sure she was still breathing. He shook her a bit and her eyes snapped open.

"Ariana? Are you okay? What in the world happened?"

She looked around wildly, then put her hand over her heart and took several deep breaths. "I- I don't remember."

"You don't remember anything?"

"I... It's really fuzzy. I just remember... Someone... He had a hood... I couldn't see his face."

"What did he do?"

Ariana put her face in her hands and smoothed back her red hair. "Nothing... He didn't do anything. I don't remember... He attacked me and then I think he left."

"Okay... Let's go, then. We should go back to the hideout."

Suddenly, Ariana pushed him away. "No! No.. I can't go back to the hideout!"

"What? Why not?" Archer was genuinely shocked.

"I don't remember why... But I can't. I just-" She broke down into sobs. Despite solace in returning somewhere safe- her subconscious was telling her that it would lead to ruin... How she didn't know. Just that it would.

"Okay! Okay, go to Mahogany Town, then! I need someone to protect some grunts I sent there anyway."

Ariana sniffed and nodded, quickly over her outburst. Archer shook his head as she walked away. She must have been faking it. Go figure, she just doesn't want to go back to the hideout so she invented this ridiculous scheme. He rolled his eyes, "Giovanni, what ever possessed you to date her?"
__________________________________________________
AN: In case it wasn't clear- the beginning of this is like a flashback that covers the actions of Team Rocket and the rest of the world. The Noctowl from the first chapter was from Sprout Tower... And again Sam's little nickname has changed to 'Scythe.'

TY to my beta, Foonator and my editor- Soulmaster... The master of souls. :)

OC: Lizeth goes to Fearless Neko- Hope I got her character right.

OC: Tobi goes to Jestie Uchiha

So Ariana is bugged. hmmm? The plot is beginning to show up. So much wondering to be done.

"Pretty easy work. There's a well in Azalea Town that is home to a large portion of the Slowpoke population. Since there's been a demand for slowpoke tails, he wants you to cut some off for profit."

Two things here. One Slowpoke isn't capitalized. Two SlowpokeTails is one word.

Originally Posted by Soulmaster

So Ariana is bugged. hmmm? The plot is beginning to show up. So much wondering to be done.

"Pretty easy work. There's a well in Azalea Town that is home to a large portion of the Slowpoke population. Since there's been a demand for slowpoke tails, he wants you to cut some off for profit."

Two things here. One Slowpoke isn't capitalized. Two SlowpokeTails is one word.

Don't hurt yourself trying in all your wondering. ;P