Foul Weather Friends

Before they can get it, a girl catches the Hoppip with a net, and she already has another one with her. Brock chats her up but Misty hauls him away by the ear. The girl's name is Mariah and she trains Hoppip. When they come to her house, Ash notices the instruments on the roof and she explains that she is a weather forecaster, and uses the Hoppip to help her make predictions. She also studies the relationship between Hoppip and the weather. Being a Hoppip trainer makes her happy, even though she has to chase after the Hoppip sometimes.

Behind her house is a fenced enclosure, her Hoppip are all here, eight of them. A breeze comes along and the Hoppip all float into the air, except for one. It jumps off a rock but it doesn't float and falls down. Misty notices something different about it and cleans it with a handkerchief. It's an Oddish! Mariah says that it had played with the Hoppip for a long time and wants to become one so it can fly.

Team Rocket watches them with binoculars, and Meowth comes up with an idea to steal the Hoppip and use them for an aerial delivery service. James doesn't like it, what if the breeze doesn't get the Hoppip to their destination? Meowth wants to try anyway.

Ash and friends are watching the Hoppip when TR shows up with large paper fans and tries to blow the Hoppip away. When their effort isn't enough, Meowth brings out a giant electric fan. The Hoppip float away but are quickly caught. Ash isn't going to let TR get the Hoppip, and releases Chikorita. Jessie brings out Arbok but Chikorita's Razor Leaf knocks it out. Meowth increases the power of the fan but Pikachu zaps it and it explodes, sending TR blasting off.

Ash complements his Pokemon on a job well done, and Chikorita bumps Pikachu out of its way. Misty complements the Oddish for helping catch the Hoppip and it's happy.

Suddenly the Hoppip gather together in a bunch. Mariah says that this means there's a big storm coming. They go into her house and she checks her instruments, and says that there's a tornado on the way!

TR is walking along the road, and gets swept up by the tornado. Our heroes take cover; the tornado tears the roof off the house, and the Hoppip and the Oddish are carried away. Mariah and Misty almost get swept away too. When the storm passes, they all go out to search for the Hoppip.

They find the Oddish under the wreckage of the roof, it's okay and wants to find its friends. Mariah says that it has always been very caring toward the Hoppip. One Hoppip is found in a tree, Brock climbs up to get it. A second is stranded in the middle of a stream, and Brock goes into the water to pick it up. Number three is seen floating in the air, and they all chase it.

TR is in their balloon, with the other four Hoppip. They were lucky that the wind blew them right into the balloon. Seeing the floating Hoppip, they catch it with a net. Below, an angry Misty uses her Staryu to bring the balloon down.

Ash confronts TR, and James brings out Victreebel, which chomps him. Ash gets out Heracross while Jessie releases Arbok. Misty wants to send in Staryu also but the Oddish wants to battle. Victreebel attacks, and Oddish kicks it. Misty notes that it has a strong kick because of all the hopping around it does. Oddish uses Stun Spore and another hefty kick to finish Victreebel. Now Arbok tries a tackle, but Oddish leaps over it and uses Sleep Powder. Arbok is out. Meowth decides to battle for once and uses a Scratch attack. The Oddish powers up a Solar Beam, and TR blasts off a second time.

The Oddish is very happy, and Brock tells it that while one can't do everything, it's what one can do that counts.

Before departing, our three heroes help Mariah rebuild her house. Brock thinks about staying and helping Mariah with her research but Misty nips that idea in the bud by dragging him away. And so the journey continues.

Written By: Audrey