Two young pokemon peered thru the trees into a clearing.
"Come on Entai! Nothing's going to happen! Ninetales only curse humans!" Entai 
looked at his older brother Raikou. 
"Then why don't you do it?"
"How 'bout we both do it at the same time?" Raikou growled. He loved getting his 
brother into trouble, and Entai never learned to NOT trust Raikou. Entai nodded 
his big lion shaped head. They crept to the edge of the clearing. Raikou saw the 
target: The Black Ninetales. She was huge, larger than Entai. Her silky fur was 
blacker than a new moon. He knew it was a risk, for she had a tendency to curse 
ANYONE who got on her nerves, as Regirock,Regice,and Registeel found out the 
hard way. They were still humans after 500 years. Raikou also knew that he was 
one of the fastest of the legendaries. They crept up to her sleeping figure.
"On 3 Ok? 1,2,3!" The two brothers stamped on the tails. The Black Ninetales 
woke with alarm. She turned, Her glowing red eyes staring......
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**
James awoke with a start, his lavender hair plastered to his face with cold 
sweat. He looked around, trying to figure out where he was. He heard Jessie 
moan. She was sleeping in bed next to him, Meowth a the foot of the bed, deep in 
a dream. Then he remembered. He rented a hotel room with some money he had found 
at his "summer cottage". James looked at his hands and then buried his face in 
them. Why?, James thought, Why is my past catching up with me? Why now? For he 
knew that it wasn't a dream. It was a memory. James sighed sadly, then headed 
toward the bathroom. He took off his pajamas, got in the shower and turned the 
water as hot as it would go. He let the near boiling water run over him. He 
could still see those red eyes, still hear that cold, cold voice.....He 
shuddered as the water ran cold, almost like it could hear it too. James turned 
off the water, got out to get a towel and wrapped it around his waist. He wiped 
the steam off the mirror. He stared at himself with his dark green eyes, looking 
weary from lack of sleep. How long has it been, a part of James' mind said, how 
long since it happened? "Nearly 3 millinia," He answered himself. He had his 
hand on the doorknob when something caught the corner of his eye. Markings that 
he hadn't seen in about 3 millinia had appeared on his arms. Two jet black "V" 
shaped stripes were on each of his arms. He rubbed his left hand over the 
stripes on his right arm, feeling very fine and silky fur. He couldn't help 
grinning ear to ear. He opened the bathroom door to go back into the hotel room 
and immeditly stopped grinning. He saw Jessie, still asleep in bed. James 
couldn't bear to tell her face to face. He walked over to a dresser and opened 
the first drawer. His Team Rocket uniform was neatly folded next to Jessie's. He 
shook his head and closed the drawer.Then he knelt down, opened the bottom 
drawer, reached in and pulled out a very different outfit. It was a black 
turtleneck and a pair of black pants. When James put them on the turtleneck was 
snug, but the pants were a little baggy. Then he went to the little night stand 
next to the bed and rummaged around one of the drawers and found some paper and 
a pencil. With a heavy heart, he wrote a letter explaining why he had to leave 
so suddenly. James then put his only Pokemon and his signature rose next to the 
letter. He took one last look at his friends and left.  
Jessie woke up a few minutes later, realizing James wasn't in bed. She was 
getting dressed when something caught her eye. Jessie finished putting her boots 
on and walked toward the table that was near the window overlooking the Celadon 
City Game Corner. She realized, as she got nearer, that it was a letter. Her 
hands wavered over the very familiar handwriting of James. She read the letter.



	Dear Jessie & Meowth,

First, I'm sorry I have to leave so suddenly. Second, I have never told the 
truth about who I really am. I'm not even human. I am Raikou, The Legendary 
Beast of Lightning.
A few thousend years ago my brother(Entai) and I got on the bad side of a black 
Ninetales. We ended up getting ALL the legendaries cursed for 3 millinia. The 
Black Ninetales wiped all of the legendary Pokemon's memory except ours. She did 
that so we could live in guilt over what we did. Well, the curse is lifting and 
the others are getting their memory and powers back. People will start hunting 
us down. That's why I had to leave. I couldn't bear to put you two in danger. 
Don't look for me! 


					James

PS.- Please take good care of Mime JR and Cacnea.




Jessie's first reaction was skeptical. James would NEVER leave his Mime JR 
alone. He always had to have it with him. Then she saw his two PokeBalls laying 
next to his signature rose. James was telling the truth. Her eyes welled up. She 
never told him how she felt about him. "Meowth! Wake up!" Meowth opened one lazy 
eye. "Why? It's like 4 in da mornin'!" Jessie smacked him with a fan, knocking 
him clear across the room. Meowth unsheathed his claws ready to Fury Swipe the 
heck outta her, but realized she was crying. Jess is cryin'? Somethin' bad musta 
happened. Meowth thought as he retradted his claws. Little did he know how right 
he was......