In a back alley of a city, there lay a small shop. 'MYSTIC ARTS, WITCHCRAFT, AND LAWNS MOWED' read the sign. And today, this shop and the owner had three customers. Jessie, James, and Meowth, Team Rocket's three most infamous members.
The owner was an elderly woman, who dealt with the first two parts. Her grandson did the last part. Team Rocket were here for the first two parts, not having a lawn.
"...But at these rates I wish we did!" Meowth noted.
"Shh! Anyway, as I was saying, we need a way to turn someone into a pikachu, for reasons," James said.
The elderly woman sighed.
"Sir, I told you already I don't care what those reasons are and I can do it. You have my prices."
"Oh, and we also want to turn someone else into a different pokemon, preferably one that stinks!" Jessie added, wanting a little vindictiveness against the twerp's travelling companions.
"Okay, fair enough, I do have a buy two get one free offer, just don't mix them up, and don't let them get electrocuted because like five minutes later they'll just explode for no reason." said the genre-aware Witch.
"We will! I mean, won't!" Meowth said.
It was a few days later, out in the countryside, when Team Rocket spotted their targets: Ash Ketchum and his Pikachu, his friends not present at the moment.
"We've got him alone, this is great! Just turn him into a Pikatwerp, catch him and the real one, two pikachus!" Meowth whisper-cheered
"And we can turn his idiot friends into other pokemon later!" Jessie said back.
"All we have to do is throw the vial and it'll turn him into a pikachu," James grinned, reaching for one.
"Wait, we need to be sure it's the right one." Jessie warned.
"...Which one is the right one?"
"It was never explained. Did we ask off-screen?" Meowth wondered.
Jessie sighed.
"Okay, let's think, we have a purple lid, a green lid, and a blue lid. Now that means we have a 33 1/3rd chance of getting it right but our luck isn't normal so it's more like 25%."
"So if we pick two and say they're it the odds are better the other one is it!" James said.
"I... have no idea? Oh, screw it, let's just throw one."
They did so.
Ash heard the tinkle of glass at his feet, and was startled to be enveloped in a purple cloud of smoke. The Pokemon trainer barely had a chance to cry out in surprise before he felt himself shrinking, fur growing, and a tail pushing out of his backside, even as he became trapped inside his clothes. Pikachu adopted a memetic face in response to this, and as the smoke cleared, Team Rocket leapt out. With rubber gloves, James grabbed the angry Pikachu, giggling with joy as the attacks were harmless.
"And now to yank out the other pikachu!" Jessie said, reaching for the shuffling form in the pile of Ash's clothes.
And then screamed as a head popped out, not the yellow fur and long black-tipped ears of a pikachu, but the purple-white fur and catlike ears of a Stunky.
"We hit him with the wrong one!"
Ash, very annoyed to be a pokemon again, shuffled out from his clothes and turned tail, James dropping Pikachu in fright. Team Rocket also tried to turn tail and run - but Ash and his new body were faster. Coughing and hacking as the foul scent covered them, the trio practically collapsed.
And were grounded, giving Pikachu the chance he needed. One thunderbolt later, and each member of Team Rocket had one word to say:
"ACK!"
Huffing and irate, Ash began trying to gather up his clothes as the singed-and-smelly Team Rocket twitched. A few moments later, they'd somewhat recovered, holding their noses, to find Ash and Pikachu were long gone.
"Little twerp! Still, at least we didn't break the other two potions, we can get after him and try again!" Jessie said.
"Uh, they seem to be... boiling?" James noted, holding the green lidded one.
Jessie inspected the blue lidded one.
"Uh oh, didn't the woman say we shouldn't electrocute them?"
Two explosions were the answer. Meowth jumped in fright, as clouds covered his human partners. They faded to show that like Ash, there were shuffling shapes below piled clothing. Jessie's now-Pikachu head popped out, blinking in confusion. James emerged, now a Rattata.
"Rattata!" he fumed.
"Pika!" Jessie cursed.
"Language!" Meowth gasped.
Jessie and James exchanged a look. One thunderbolt and hyper-fang later, Meowth was twitching, double shocked. And then the two humans turned pokemon realised they had a big problem - their noses were now more sensitive, and they were still covered in Stunky stink.
"PIKACHU!" Jessie screamed, meaning they needed to find a bath, and soon.
"RATTATA!" James agreed.
As they fled, leaving Meowth twiching and their abandoned clothes behind, the actual Pokemon groaned.
"We're not even blasting off today huh? Okay..."