The Greatest Trial

Jessie, James, and Meowth were walking down the dirt road of a tiny town that
wasn't even on the maps. It was one of James' shortcuts.
It had been a while since the whole deal with Ash's gym in Pallet. Team Rocket
had forgiven Ash for giving up his dream for them, and they were back to the old
game of trying to make his life miserable, and trying to steal what they still
saw as a priceless Pikachu.
James had just bought Jessie an ice cream, and they were both very happy for a
break of work work work. They're old hide out, the cabin, had long since been
destroyed, and they were forced to be forever nomadic. 
But it was on this bright, sunny morning that they were about to get the shock
of their lives.
A cold, gloved hand landed on Jessie's shoulder. She jumped and turned around,
and stared right into the cold eyes of Officer Jenny. 
"You're under arrest,"
James looked at Officer Jenny, and then down at his side where he thought Meowth
was, only to find Meowth was all ready gagged, and in Officer Jenny's van.
"What did we do?" James asked bluntly, a little annoyed that they were going to
be arrested on such a pretty day.
Officer Jenny did not look pleased. "Don't play stupid, Mr. Morgan."
James turned a shade of scarlet, not liking anyone to address him by his last
name. It only brought back memories of his old family.
"You're under arrest for murder, as you very well know…" Officer Jenny
continued.
"WHAT?" Jessie and James said together.
"Oh, no no no, Officer," Jessie said, pleading on her knees. "We've been under
arrest for lots of things, mostly stealing things, and disturbing the peace, but
we would… we wouldn't do THAT you have to believe us!"
"You both have a criminal record, why should I believe you?" Officer Jenny said,
her hands on her hips.
James looked at the ground. "What… what have you done with Meowth?"
"He's going to the Institute For Dangerous Pokémon. He doesn't get a trial,
because he's just a pokémon."
Jessie glared daggers at Officer Jenny. "Meowth is as much a human as James and
I!"
"Yes, well, you can tell all that to the judge. Your trial is going to be in
three months. Find a good lawyer, but I doubt either of you will have a chance."

A good lawyer was found. A good lawyer who they told everything. Everything
about their lives. They told him about how Meowth had been taken away, and that
he was practically human. They told him of Jessie's childhood with lots of
nothing, and James childhood of too much of nothing. They told her about Ash,
and Misty, and Brock, and Tracy, and everyone else that ever caused them
trouble. They told him about when sometimes they were trying to make a fair
capture of Pokémon, but Ash would get in the way… they weren't always stealing!
The lawyer soon learned who Team Rocket really was. Sure, they were the bad
guys, but they had hearts too. And they weren't insane. And they wouldn't murder
anyone.
In three months, when the trial came, the turnout was amazing. The entire town
of Celadon had turned up, or so it seemed. There was hardly a seat in the
courthouse.
Judge King was ruling the court. The prosecuting attorney gave Jessie and James
evil glares from his side of the courthouse.
James was still unable to keep his eyes off the ground, and Jessie was
especially aggressive. 
The sound of the judge's mallet brought silence to the court. "The prosecution
may begin its case."
The prosecutor, a tall man with dark hair and blue eyes paced down the
courtroom. "I am here to prove to you, citizens, that these two, plus their
accompanying Meowth gave committed murder. We all know that one of the Nurse
Joys has been murdered. She was murdered right in her pokémon center on Orange
Island, where we know that these two criminals were at the time of the crime,
following witness Ash Ketchum. We think that what happened was that the
defendants were waiting out side the pokémon center, waiting for everyone to
leave. As soon as they were sure it was empty except for Nurse Joy, they walked
in with their large automatic guns that we have confiscated, and told her to
give them all the pokémon in the center. When she refused, they let lose with
the firearms. Realizing what they had done, they ran from the scene of the
crime, through a small town that doesn't have a name. It was here Officer Jenny
arrested them.
"I would like to call my first witness. James Morgan, please stand…"
James looked terrified to be the first witness, but he stood, and made his way
to the witness stand.
"Raise your right hand," said the bailiff. "Do you swear to tell the truth, the
whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you God?"
"I do," James said miserably.
He sat down.
"Now Mister… James was it? Yes… do you own any automatic weapons?"
"Yes,"
The court gasped.
"Well, that is to say before they took them away from us…" James said coldly.
"Yes, well… did you ever use these guns to harm anything?"
James thought about this. "The only thing we might have ever shot was a
Dragonite near Bill's lighthouse. And that was all Jessie's doing, I didn't
really want to…"
The prosecutor curled his lip. "Haven't you ever used one of these large guns
for hurting other things besides a Dragonite?"
"No."
"Have you threatened to?"
James squirmed a little, and glanced at Jessie. She was biting her lip, and
looked like she was about to cry.
"Please answer the question," said Judge King.
"Yes…" James said. "We've threatened to but we wouldn't ever really do it…"
The prosecutor looked satisfied. He paced the room, and then stopped at his
desk, and picked up a yellow envelope.
"These, ladies and gentleman of the jury, are pictures of the crime scene
shortly after the body was found. They have been magnified several thousands of
times, and still we can detect no fingerprints. This means, of course, that the
murderers had to be wearing gloves. When the defendants were arrested, they were
both wearing gloves. Also, the gloves had just been washed for some reason… they
were still a little damp. Officer Jenny noticed this when she yanked them back
to hand cuff them before they tried to run. Would you tell me why you were
wearing gloves?"
"Standard uniform." James said simply.
"Standard uniform for what?"
"Team Rocket Sector Dan."
"So you admit you're on Team Rocket?"
James felt like he was being pressured, he said as calmly as he could, "I didn't
deny anything about Team Rocket."
"Could you tell us why your gloves were damp?"
"We… we had just washed them," James said miserably.
The prosecutor smiled to himself. He had him cornered. "Why did you just wash
them?"
"Because we were eating ICE CREAM!" James shouted, and put his head on the
witness stand in frustration, also so no one could see him start to break.
The court gave him enough time to get a hold of himself.
The prosecutor looked unsure of that answer… he wasn't expecting it. "What KIND
of ice cream?"
"Strawberry cream." James said crossing his arms in front of him.
The prosecutor looked surprised, and then said, "I'm finished."
"The defense can now cross examine the witness," said the judge, sternly.
Jessie and James' lawyer stood up. "Hello, James,"
James blinked, a little surprised that he was being treated so gently again.
"Hello."
"James, why is it you're in Team Rocket to start with?" he asked softly.
James was taken off guard. "What? How is that going to help me…?" he looked up
and saw the judge's stern face, and gulped. "I… I ran away from home, sir… and
Team Rocket was the only way I could get some money, because I couldn't get a
really good education because I was all ways moving. But I did try… I entered a
school called Pokémon Tech, where I met Jessie. We studied really hard, and we
knew all our facts… but on the night before the big test we stayed up because we
were so sure… and… we just didn't cut it… and so we had to run, because it was
the only thing we figured we could do at that age. We joined a bike gang, and
they gave us protection until we were old enough to go out on our own. We
learned about Pokémon with this gang, and we were able to train our only
Pokémon. Mine was a Koffing. But because of some of the stuff we've learned…
we've… we've become more successful trainers. We never at any time abused our
Pokémon. When we heard of Team Rocket, they wanted us in. So we joined. And
since then it's the only way someone like me can make any money… and I need some
to survive, you know…"
The lawyer smiled a little, and mouthed to James, "This is exactly what they
need to hear," and then continued. "Why did you run away in the first place?"
James looked at the lawyer with a look of death, but continued anyway. "I lived
in a huge estate… some of you probably have heard of my parents… The Morgan
Estate. Huge place… well, my parents didn't think of me as a son," his lip
curled, "All I was to them was an heir. I had a Growlithe, and that's it. And
then they wanted to marry me off to someone they thought was perfect. I hated
her more than anything I ever hated. She wanted to change me into something I
wasn't! And that's why… I had to get away from her and my parents,"
"I'm finished too," their lawyer said simply.
Flustered, the prosecutor told James to step down, and then called on Jessie.
They swore her in, and she took a seat.
"What's your name please?"
"You know my name," Jessie snapped.
"Say it so the jury knows, please, Miss,"
"My name is Jessie." She said raising an eyebrow.
"Have you been convicted of any other crimes before, Miss Jessie?" he asked
calmly.
Jessie glared at him. "That's not a fair question."
"Please answer his question," Judge King said firmly.
"Yes. Yes I have."
"What crimes, if you wouldn't mind telling us…?"
Jessie took a deep breath. "Theft, disturbing the peace, poaching… impersonation
of a authority figure… hacking into a computer… harassment, sexual harassment,
driving without a license, trespassing, destruction of public and private
property… and I think that's it," she said stubbornly. 
The jury looked ready to convict her right at that moment. They were even surer
of themselves than they were with James.
"But…" Jessie's voice was softer, and somehow seemed like it was shaking. "I
would never kill anybody,"
James looked up at her. He had never heard her speak so gently of truthfully.
The prosecutor glared at her. 
The Defense Attorney again stood.
"Jessie, did you have a similar reason for joining Team Rocket as your partner?"
"Yes," Jessie said pursing her lips.
"Would you say that many of the members have a similar reason?"
"I would," Jessie said, crossing her legs. 
"Have you or your partner ever really harmed a person?"
"No," Jessie said, "But THEY have harmed us. We've been blasted, shot at, blown
up, torched, drown, frozen, whipped, and most of all shocked… electric rat…"
"One last question, Jess… is it true that you were wanted in the city where the
murder was committed?" he said with a small grin on his face.
Jessie shook her head immediately. "Oh no, we weren't wanted there at all! In
fact in that town James and I were honorary citizens!"
The lawyer grinned triumphantly. "Would you tell us about that?"
Jessie crossed her legs. "The towns pokémon were turning against them, and we
were the ones who helped stop the two who's fault it was… and they made us
honorary citizens. We've been welcome there for a long time… how do you think we
go the ice cream?"

"I'll call my next witness," the prosecutor said impatiently. "Officer Jenny,
please step up to the witness stand.
After Officer Jenny was sworn in, and Jessie had sat down, he questioned her
too.
"Miss Jenny, have you had dealings with these two before?"
"Yes, I have, they cause a lot of local trouble. My sisters and cousins and I
all deal with them."
"Yes of course… I rest my case."
There were mumbling among the jury members.
The judge glanced at Jessie and James' lawyer, but he shook his head, not
wanting to cross exam the witness. 
He stood up, and said kind of miserably, "Since I all ready asked Jessie and
James what I needed to… I don't have any more witnesses to call,"
Jessie and James looked at him shocked. "We're… we're doomed," James managed.
"In that case," said the judge, "you may give us your closing statements,"
The lawyer took a deep breath. "It is evident that these two did not commit this
murder. You are to assume they are innocent until proven guilty without a shadow
of a doubt… they didn't have any reason to kill Nurse Joy. They're honorary
citizens there… they wouldn't do that anyway, but especially at a place that
finally some people give them the love they deserve… they both didn't get it
from their own families, and Team Rocket is their job… not a hobby." 
He sat down. Jessie put her head in her hands, and started to cry. "James… I … I
don't think he believed us either…" she whispered.
James nodded sorrowfully.
The prosecutor got up and sneered at Jessie and James, as he began. "The
witnesses are guilty. The only two that the defense could question about it was
the criminals them selves! They're gloves had just been washed, and we know that
the murderers were wearing gloves. Who else could it be but Jessie and James?
That ice cream is just the first thing that came into James' head… and he knows
it. Also remember that these two are incredible actors, as we have seen in some
of their other MANY ruthless schemes and arrests,"
The judge dismissed the jury. In only thirty minutes they returned with their
verdict.
	"We, the jury, find the defendants, Jessie and James, guilty of murder, a
capital offence,"
	Jessie and James looked stunned. They thought that losing their job was bad…
this was worse than they could have possibly imagined. They were going to get
death.
	Jessie broke down and cried, and James found her hand, and gave it a little
squeeze, as if to tell her, "Jess, it's going to be all right. We didn't kill
that nurse, and soon they'll see the truth…"
	Jessie seemed to get the message, and wiped her eyes on James' shirt.
	The judge made his speech, dismissed the court, but neither Jessie nor James
heard any of it. Everyone exited the courtroom, and a young girl, maybe a little
younger than Jessie, approached them.
	"I believe you," she said, "I was in the town that day… I work here, I work for
the lawyers… I know how these courts work. Jessie, James, I want you two to run
away from here… as far away as you can. And try not to get caught, please, try…
Stay away long enough until my counterparts and I can find out who really did
kill Nurse Joy, and then you will get a full pardon. If you stick around here,
by the time they find out, it may be too late," she looked at them sadly. "Come
with me before they lock you up,"