[Corruption, Hypnosis, Minionization]
"You show promise, Girl. Join Team Rocket. Perhaps then your skills will be put to better use than by pursuing this farce called Pokémon Battling."
Those were the words that still burned through Leaf's heart. In her younger years, she had lost. She had thought that she could save the day and stop Team Rocket and their skeevy activities...
And yet Giovann... Boss Giovanni had defeated her. And his words still rung through her to this very day.
It was why she was looking at herself in the mirror. Examining the woman that she had become after these long three years. Though he had disappeared, no doubt because of Red having done what she couldn't and disgracing the Boss... She would keep the dream alive. Together with the rest of the reformed Team Rocket that had begun to establish themselves within Johto.
The white dress she wore, which Ariana had recommended to her after she had proven herself to Archer and the other Admins, made her look very different from the girl she had once been. Especially when she added the slight hint of deep green makeup to her lips and her eyes, making her look even more mature...
Even more deadly, in the eyes of certain individuals. It was why she barely wore this outfit. She didn't want to reveal her allegiances just yet. Archer and the others could take the fight to the Gym Leaders and the system as a whole on their terms. She would operate on her own. Because who would expect a second branch of this 'Neo' Team Rocket to be active, much less run by a Champion contender that only rose to prominence because Red decided to become a hermit?
Leaf shook her head and smiled as she heard the sound of her bell ringing. Her guest was here. Lured far from her hometown. Lured to Goldenrod, where Team Rocket's influence was at its strongest.
With her outfit exchanged for a dress without the trademarked 'R' pressed against the back and the patch on the front, Leaf went out of her room. So that she could greet the guest...
And lure her into the web woven by Team Rocket Admin Leaf...
---
"T-Thank you for having me, Miss Leaf. I-I'm shocked that you would choose me, you know?"
Leaf's guest was more than an ordinary individual. In fact, it was one of the very Gym Leaders that would try and get in the way of their ultimate mission. Blackthorn City's Gym Leader, Clair. Given the way she practically trembled with excitement and nervousness... She was incredibly inexperienced in the role, and it was far too obvious too...
Which was why Leaf had invited her here. She was once like Clair. Not nearly that nervous, yet at the same time painfully unaware of how you could be manipulated. "No, thank you, Clair. It's not often that I see such talent. You remind me of myself when I was younger." A little white lie, wrapped in a bundle of truth. That was all it would take to make her slip...
The shade of red that had already found its way onto Clair's cheeks deepened in color, as she fidgeted in her seat with a bit of pride. Somebody on the level of Lance was praising her. She couldn't believe it. "I-I do... That's great to hear, Miss Leaf!"
She was like a puppy that just needed a little push. Adorable. And yet again, so easily exploited. There was only one girl as easily exploited as Clair, but she wouldn't be as effective given her nature. Clair had something to prove. Something that would make her a wonderful recruit.
"Surely you have your fair share of ambitions, Clair? Something you want to do, somebody you want to beat? You're still young after all, you have a whole life ahead of you." Leaf said, all while taking a seat herself. Not across from Clair... But rather right at her side. Sitting right where she could look straight into Clair's eyes, where she could see every little hint of emotion on the girl's face.
The girl fidgeted in her seat. "I... I would like to beat Lance in a fight. I can't call myself the Gym Leader I want to be, if I haven't been able to best him once. I don't care if I end up losing more after that. Just that proof that I can beat him, no matter how slim."
She was insecure. No wonder there were rumors of her backing out of rewarding Trainers with the badges they deserved if they beat her, forcing them to go through a special trial. That insecurity...
"Have you considered using a different team of Pokémon, Clair? Something besides Dragons, so you can take advantage of where his weaknesses lie?"
Leaf's words caused an expression of shock to form on Clair's face. "I... I would never dream of doing that. A Dragon Tamer would only use Dragons and their kind. Besides..." She paused, letting her gaze fall towards her knees. "I don't want to just prove that I can beat him. I want to prove that I can beat him as a Dragon Tamer."
"I understand. I do."
Sweet words wrapped around lies. Lies that only grew more potent the more Leaf fed her those sweet little lies...
"But even a Dragon Tamer needs to understand how they can be beaten. That's why I want you to try out another Pokémon for now. So you can train to beat yourself. I'll play your role once that time comes, of course." Leaf explained, as she pulled a Pokéball off the strap hidden by her dress, gently placing it on the table as she got up. "Let me just set the mood. A first meeting is special, even if it isn't in the wild."
Clair couldn't argue with that, even if she did find it a little weird. Instead, she gazed at the Pokéball. Would a Champion candidate really just use normal Pokéballs? Didn't she take more care of them? She could at least have used something like an Ultra Ball, or...
The blue-haired girl winced as Leaf turned on the radio. A high pitched tune hit her ears, disorienting her slightly...
"Sorry about that. This thing is still new, so it has a tendency to be a little loud when I turn it on." Leaf said, smiling as she turned back towards the table. Without touching the dial on the radio, letting that high-pitched tune slowly fade into the background...
Clair blinked a few times as the same happened to her. She didn't understand how, but... She wasn't about to question it. Instead, she took the Pokéball, and pressed the button on the front.
It opened in a flash, partly blinding her... And the screech that echoed from the released Pokémon didn't help her either. But she had to push on through. Leaf was counting on her...
"...Miss Leaf... That's a..."
Leaf smiled as the small bat Pokémon flapped its wings obediently on the table. "A Zubat. What were you expecting, Clair?"
Clair didn't know what she expected. But a common Pokémon... And one with infamy like Zubat, the kind that Team Rocket used in the past? That wasn't it. "I... I don't see how learning with a Zubat can help me know my weaknesses, Miss Leaf."
"You'd be surprised. Even a small thing like Zubat is useful in the right situation. Especially when the opponent's already been left in a suggestive state by the Supersonic pouring over the speakers."
E...Eh? Suggestive state...? Opponent..? What did she...
Leaf's smile turned into a smirk as she snapped her fingers. "Zubat. Use Hypnosis."
The Pokémon that Clair thought nothing of did as its owner commanded, letting out a differently pitched screech. One that immediately caused Clair's eyes to start fluttering rapidly as she struggled to stay awake.
"M-Miss... Miss L...Leaf..."
And just like that, Clair collapsed. Her body instantly grew slack in her seat as her eyes closed, and a soft snore left her lips. The hypnotic suggestions were stronger than ever. Just as she had expected.
Disorienting a vulnerable girl with the recorded cries of her Crobat's Supersonic, and then finishing her off with Hypnosis from the Zubat she had specifically raised for tricks like these... It was all too easy.
Now... It was all up to her to push her that last little step...
---
"Where..."
Clair didn't know where she was. Nor did she know how she got there. She barely knew anything. She barely understood anything....
All that she understood was that she was floating in darkness. Or at least, something like darkness. It was all far too much for her mind to handle at the moment. So many different sensations were flooding through her, and here she was. Practically drowning in all of it...
She trembled. Shivering as she hugged herself, barely able to deal with the sensations. She... She had fallen prey to something, hadn't she?
"What would Lance think if he saw me now... He always got angry with me when I didn't accept defeat..."
Her vulnerabilities were laid bare. And she hated it. She hated being like this. If only...
"If only you could be where he was. That's what you're thinking. Isn't it?"
A voice. A familiar voice. She couldn't quite understand whose it was. But she didn't consider it a threat. Her mind wouldn't allow her to perceive it as one.
"...Yes..." Clair muttered, gazing straight ahead as she hugged her legs. Straight ahead at what looked like a silhouette of Lance...
Then, a silhouette of herself. In the same garb that he wore. In the garb of the current Champion. She... She wanted to be strong. She wanted to be the one on top.
"But... I'm not strong enough..." She muttered once again, as that silhouette vanished. She couldn't handle seeing herself in his place. She couldn't handle confronting her own strength.
A soft chuckle caressed her inner ear. As she felt a hand slowly working its way across her body. A hand that felt warm. It felt like it was there to guide her...
"You can be that strong. No, you can be even stronger."
The voice reassured her. All while helping her slowly remove her arms from her legs. So she could simply float in the darkness...
All while the hand continued to caress her. No, it wasn't just caressing her. She could feel something slipping onto her. Something tight...
Yet at the same time... It didn't feel constricting. If anything, wearing this... It made her feel like she could be as strong as the voice implied she could be.
"You can become the strongest there ever was. The Trainer dominating the entire world. There's just one thing that you have to do..."
Once again, Clair saw a silhouette of herself. But this time, it wasn't just a silhouette. She could see more. Much, much more.
She could see herself standing there with a wicked grin on her face. Strutting around in long black latex heels that reached all the way up to her thighs. A tight latex leotard clinging to her torso and leaving her shoulders and hips exposed. A set of delicate yet shiny elbow-length gloves. And a cap to complete the look...
All tied together with that symbol on the chest... The same symbol printed on her thigh for emphasis...
"Join Team Rocket."
The command ran through her as she focused on Team Rocket's insignia on her own body. The voice commanded her... If she were to follow that command, would she end up just like that? Brimming with confidence, ready to take the world..?
Would she be able to defeat Lance... No, not just defeat him... To utterly crush him under her heel and prove to him who the strongest Dragon Tamer was?
"That, and so much more, could be yours."
The voice spoke again. Right as she felt the sensation of the hand grazing against her body once again. And something tightening around her torso...
A single glance down at herself revealed what the hand had done. What had happened while she was so laser-focused on the potential future.
Clair was already wearing the uniform she saw her silhouette wear. The same shiny leotard. The same shiny heels and gloves. The same cap...
The same wicked smile curling onto her lips as she hugged herself, panting as the symbol started to form on her thigh. A symbol of her growing devotion. No, more than that. A testament to the power that she would have at her fingertips.
"What do you say, Grunt?"
Clair trembled all over, her body gradually ceasing to float within the darkness. Instead, she stood tall. And with that wicked grin on her face, she slammed her thighs together and saluted, just as a good Grunt should.
"Glory to Team Rocket!"
The symbol on both her thigh and her leotard began shining in response to her declaration, as the red hue swallowed the darkness whole...
Swallowing her very self, as her conditioning had come to an end...
---
"Good morning, Grunt."
Clair trembled as she heard Miss Leaf's voice echo through her ears, immediately jumping right out of her chair and saluting her superior officer. She didn't need time to process what was going on. A good Grunt understood what her role in all of this was.
"Good morning, Miss Leaf! Glory to Team Rocket!" She shouted with so much vigor and pride. As if her very core had been washed over with true loyalty to the cause...
Leaf smiled, having changed back into her Admin uniform while the Hypnosis worked its magic on the girl. All she had to do was caress her a little during the time she slept, whisper a few sweet nothings into her ear... And the insecurities would swirl around and deal with the rest.
"Glory to Team Rocket." Leaf declared as well, all while carefully caressing some of the Pokéballs that she had pilfered from the Gym Leader. "What is your mission, Grunt?" A little test. To see how badly she had been swallowed by her new loyalty.
Clair maintained her loyal stance, as she began to recite her mission. "Steal and swindle the populace out of their Pokémon, for the sake of Boss Giovanni's return! And rise to glory as part of Team Rocket, so that I may take down the Champion and claim his spot as my own!" She was proud of what she wished for, and proud to play part in the eventual return of Team Rocket's boss...
An impressive goal to aim for, that much was certain. Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to give her new Grunts something to strive towards, so that they could keep on smokescreening her plans? Perhaps...
"Good. For the time being, stick to your core mission. In three days time, return to this location. You will resume your duty as Gym Leader for a week, then return to your duties as part of Team Rocket. This will repeat as you rise through the ranks, so that you don't arouse suspicion. Am I clear?"
Every order sank in with ease, as Clair nodded in response to her Admin's orders. "Crystal!"
Leaf's own smile grew softer in response, prompting her to push a uniform towards her dedicated grunt. "Then relieve yourself of your fake duty, and begin your duty as a Team Rocket Grunt."
Clair saluted once again, before quietly stripping bare. Letting her dress, her boots, her gloves, and especially her cape fall to the ground. Discarding them like they were nothing but trash, as she then picked up the Team Rocket Uniform that she was destined to wear.
That shiny latex uniform squeezing onto her tender body. Piece by piece.
The high heels squeezing onto her legs, both adding an erotic tint to her gait yet at the same time compressing her mass ever slightly to ensure an even deadlier kick in an emergency.
The tight leotard. Leaving absolutely nothing to the imagination, both in terms of sensuality and in terms of pure loyalty.
The delicate gloves. Allowing her to easily slip her fingers into any pockets that might be open, snagging Pokéballs and whatever else might be there for her to take...
And finally, the cap. Every good Grunt was known by their hat. And she was no exception. Not a Gym Leader, but a proud and loyal Team Rocket Grunt!
"Glory to Team Rocket!" Team Rocket Grunt Clair recited once again, saluting happily after picking up the Pokéball with her partner now resting within.
Miss... Mistress Leaf had picked out a Zubat for her. As her loyal Grunt, she would use it well. Use it to steal and take what was rightfully Team Rocket's, of course!
And naturally, she'd leave her own Pokémon in her Mistress' care. She deserved them much more than she did. Just the sight of her grin was enough to assure Clair that it was the right idea.
"Now go. Bring Glory!"
By her Mistress' command, Clair moved out. Ready to cause mischief and steal what she could...
Leaving the Mistress herself to smile as she caressed one of those very same stolen Pokéballs, all while thinking of the next vulnerable girl. Perhaps the Goldenrod Gym Leader herself, bratty as she was. Perhaps one of her fellow Kantonians. Or perhaps the gentle-hearted Jasmine, who could be coerced into a terrible situation through threatening her Pokémon...
Whoever it was... They would fall just as Clair had. Have their vulnerabilities exploited. Have their moralities twisted and turned. All so that they could spread the good word of Team Rocket. So that they could become the very worst, to then become the very best...
And when all of Johto and Kanto... And the rest of the Pokémon world as a whole had fallen to Team Rocket's influence... Perhaps then, Boss Giovanni would return.
...
Perhaps then, he would praise her for putting her skills to good work...