AN: So I've been pretty busy, and now is the first time I've gotten to get on in a while. Sorry for the long wait! I will try to be better from now on.

Chapter Two-Arrests and Bake Sales

Cyrus was supremely irritated. Damned Silph Co.! He wasn't even sure if he could replicate the Red Chain. He wanted to get this incident over as quickly as possible, but that didn't seem likely, since this was going to take him quite a while to sort out.

He had the non-working replica sitting on the table in front of him. He stared at it, not even knowing where to begin. Finally, he sighed and stood up.

Suddenly, a slip of paper caught his eye. Cyrus, being the organized man he was, always knew when something was out of place.

This was out of place.

He leaned back over to take the paper, then straightened up and read.

"I know who you are," it read. "I know what you want. And I want you to work for me."

Cyrus immediately shook his head. Stupid people, going about their pointless lives, he thought, one practical joke at a time. He ripped the paper in half and left the room.

"Hey guys," Saturn said, whipping into the break room in Veilstone, "This is odd."

"What's that?" asked Mars.

"Your face?" asked Jupiter.

Saturn pinned her with a glare. "Really?"

She smiled in response.

He shook his head. "Anyway, no. This-" he stuck out his hand, newspaper clutched firmly, "Is odd."

Jupiter sighed as she took it, crossing her legs and pursing her slick lips. Mars leaned in to read it.

"You're too close," Jupiter muttered.

"Like you mind," Mars snapped back.

"Oh whatever. Just read the damn thing," Saturn said, blushing as he waved them on.

"So, Silph Co. has releases a new design...something about a chain harnessing the power of pokemon...wait." she put it down. "This sounds an awful lot like the red chain."

"That's what I'm saying!" he cried. "Why would Boss want to do that?"

"I dunno," Jupiter said. "Maybe to raise funds?"

"Yeah," Mars said. "That sounds a lot more profitable than the bake sale."

Jupiter shuddered at the thought of the bake sale. "Never again."

"It wasn't that bad," said Saturn, sounding confused. Obviously, he'd gotten a different impression from everyone else.

"That's because you like baking," Mars said.

"No," he said, "It was because watching Cyrus sell cakes was probably the best thing ever."

"Heh, heh," Mars grinned. "Like when he told that guy to buy a cake or rethink his reason for existing, because he was accomplishing nothing but taking up space?"

"Or when that girl was worried about buying one because it would make her fat?" Jupiter grinned.

Saturn shook his head with laughter. "He...he said, 'why should you worry about something you already are?'"

"Oh my Arceus, he got slapped so fast!"

"The look on his face afterwards, though!"

"Dude, what an idiot." Jupiter said, shaking her head with a grin. "I miss out boss."

"Yeah, me too," said Saturn.

"I wonder what he's doing."

"Yeah, me too."

He was being arrested.

"Legs out. Further, further..."

"How far do you want me to spread my legs?!" Cyrus asked, outraged. "And I believe I have the right to know why I am being arrested!"

"What was that?" the policeman was talking into a speaker. "Alright, boss." then to Cyrus, "That's enough."

"Of course it is," he snapped. "You policemen, always having to have the approval of your bosses..."

The handcuffs snapped into place, and the cop behind him tugged on the chain.

"Perfect," he decided. "Now, come with me."

He tugged again, more forcefully this time. Cyrus clamped his jaw shut and heel-toed his feet back together, mind racing. What had he done? He'd walked out of Silph Co. about half an hour ago, walked down a couple of blocks...could he really have committed an offense in that span of time?

The officer yanked him back, then shoved him to the right. "Walk," he ordered.

He walked. "Officer," he began.

"Shut it, Cy."

"Cy? Who do you-"

"Boss wants to see you. I know you saw the note."

"The note." he deadpanned.

"Yup," he chirped, turning him into an alley between two decrepit buildings. "He likes your hair."

"Of course," he muttered. My hair.

Ahead of them, a shadow shifted. A man stepped out, wearing a black coat and a black hat. It wasn't until the "officer" stopped him him right in front of him that he saw the man's brown eyes, glittering in the dark.

"Who are you?" he asked. "Where are you from?"

He looked very amused when he answered, "You don't know me? I should be offended. Then again, Cyrus, you have had your head in the clouds, over there in the hick region of Sinnoh. Ever heard of Team Rocket?"

He shook his head. "No, I have not."

"Quite unfortunate," he said, taking Cyrus's chin in his hand, "But unsurprising. You got my note, didn't you?"

"That-" it was more of a statement than a question, but Cyrus's nerves were drumming, unusually, so it came out all wrong-"Was you."

"So you did. And your response?"

"I have no desire to work with you, or with anyone else in this region."

"How cute," the man said, moving his hand to ruffle his hair, annoyingly, "You think you have a choice."

"There was no point in phrasing it as a question," Cyrus said, "If I did not have a choice."

"Your logic's useless here, boy," he said. "I'm the logic in this town, and the rest of Johto and Kanto. Name's Giovanni, and I'm your new boss."