A/N: On my CardcaptorMisty account, Always Competing had stopped after 7 chapters, BUUUTTT here's the 8th chapter! ^_^ Don't you people feel special? I'm continuing it!

Disclaimer: Me: Noooooooooooo not that scary Disclaimer Land with that scary Mysterious Voice! MV: Scary eh? Me: Er….nice! I meant nice! *runs out of Disclaimer Land and slams the door behind her* Let's see……I saved the Earth today….wrote a New York Times best-selling book….established world peace…darn and I STILL didn't manage to own Pokemon. Oh well there's always tomorrow!

Always Competing

Chapter 8
Escape

Butch woke up to the frantic shaking of him by Cassidy. He squinted at her worried face. "What's up Cass?" he asked groggily.

Cassidy scowled. "That blond brat ("You're not one to talk," Butch muttered) stopped us from teleporting and we got caught in the explosion, which, by the way WASN'T supposed to happen until 10.8 seconds later! Can't you do anything right? I swear-"

Cassidy's tirade was cut off by Butch's hand. "Shhhh," he whispered. "Look at that."

Cassidy rolled her eyes and patiently allowed her eyes to wander to the spot Butch was pointing at and turned back to her dimwitted partner. "It's nice that you think that little girl is going to be of any WAIT A SECOND!"

She whipped around again and blinked. "Butch, that's Mary Wendolph," she whispered.

"Exactly," Butch smirked, crossing his arms.

"She's unconscious," Cassidy continued.

"Exactly," Butch confirmed.

A smile began to form on Cassidy's lips. "Forget those Pokemon," she told Butch. "We've hit the jackpot."

~Orange Elite Headquarters~

"Yep. Ok I understand Lance, thanks…… Ok…. Ok. Sure I'll say hi to Prima if I see her. Yup………….. Ok………. You know my Dragonite had that too but all you have to do is mix some water with the standard food and add just a pinch of salt……….Oh hey has your Dragonite ever experienced a drowsy state before? Well the other day…" Drake rambled on.

Sissy sweatdropped. "Emily, Ralph, Sarah, Jeremy, Tracey, this could…take a while," she said. "Why don't you all go and rest? It's still a little hazy out there, but once the dust and debris clear up, we can start searching for Mary right away."

Dave nodded in agreement. "The most important thing that we're concerned about this moment is you guys. Mary's a tough girl. She'll pull through."

Emily bit her lip. "I hope so," she whispered, staring out into the dust-filled arena.

Tracey gave her a sympathetic smile and pulled her into a brotherly hug.

That's not, however, as Ralph saw it.

~ In a shack somewhere on a island that I'm too lazy to name ~

Mary groggily woke up to the sound of a male and female voice arguing.

"-look, if we go right now, there's less chance we'll be caught," the female argued.

"Cass, we don't even know if the girl is alive or not!" a scratchy male's voice croaked.

"She's alive," the girl named Cass responded.

"How do you know?"

"If she has a pulse, it's usually a sign that she's alive," Cass said dryly. "Come on Butch, get that brain into gear!"

"Yeah yeah," Butch grumbled. "So are we gonna ransom her?"

"Do you have a more brilliant idea?" Cassidy asked impatiently.

"I dunno Cass, Team Rocket's never done anything along the lines of kidnapping before," Butch's voice now sounded dubious.

Mary was awake now. Team Rocket? She thought to herself, panicking. I have to get out of here! I don't want to know how badly they treat their prisoners! Ugh, I could really go for some imported Ice Cave mineral water.

Wrinkling her nose at a speck of dirt on the wooden floor, Mary calmly fingered one of her many Pokeballs. Poor Butch and Cassidy were obviously inexperienced at kidnapping, as they left the window wide open. Jumping out of the window, Mary looked around before making a run for it.

~ Pummelo Island ~
Ralph threw another glance at Emily and Tracey. Sarah and Jeremy watched amused as his face twisted into a no doubt jealous look.

"If you're not careful, your face might freeze that way," Sarah teased playfully. When Ralph didn't respond, Sarah's expression turned serious. "Look Ralph…give Em some time. I mean, she just lost her cousin. There's absolutely no sign of Mary, and even though Mary was a bit of a…brat…family's family."

"I guess you're right," Ralph said, once again gazing at the pair. But I can't help Tracey's a competitor just like me…for Emily's heart.

A/N: Oooooohhh! And the plot thickens! Heh, well the next chapter is going to be dedicated to Tracey and Emily's conversation, and you'll find out a lot more about their past. Stay tuned! Send questions, comments, flames, whatever to [email protected]. Don't forget to review! ^_~

PS: I'm thinking about doing another ER fic. These are fun!!