Hello again, fellow fanfictioneers! It's your old friend, DestinyDeoxys! I am here again just to put up a replacement for my first chapter. But don't worry (you people that have already read the chapter SHOULD NOT BE ALARMED)! I just tweaked some situations there, corrected a few mispelled words here, and the plot stayed the same. Before you start, I have a few things to say; to you who have read the chapter, I have two: 1. I hope you enjoy and like what I changed 2. Please review and tell me what you thought of it. To you who have just checked into this story I also have two: 1. Enjoy! 2. WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? ON WITH THE FIC!

Love and a Gym Battle!

The Story of Trovita Isle

Prologue: Unspoken Feelings

The ocean was perfect that day amid the Orange Islands, gentle waves rising and lapping against the water that had spawned them in an eternal rhythm. For Ashton Satoshi Ketchum, however, the beauties of nature seen from the back of his Lapras held little interest to him. Not even the thought of his next Orange League Badge, and the battle he would have to endure to earn it, could tear his eyes away from their target. The raven haired teen was staring goggle-eyed at his best friend, a redheaded girl by the name of Misty Kasumi Waterflower. He was utterly stupefied at how beautiful she looked against the background of the ocean, the wind playing about the flaming, silky hair that stood over her porcelain face. Of course, she took no notice of him, because at the time she was playing with her prized Water Pokémon as they swam beside Ash's Lapras. Ash let out a long sigh of wonder.

Wow, Misty really is beautiful. She's really good with Pokémon, too. It's too bad she'll never look at me as more than a friend. Did I just have to fall so deeply in love with my best friend of all people? As luck would have it, all these things have to happen to me, right? Thought Ash as he fought to tear his eyes away from Misty's petite figure.

"Well, if I can't get her attention, I might as well let my Pokémon out, too." He said to himself, while unhooking two Pokéballs from his belt. "Come on out, you guys!" he exclaimed as he threw the red-and-white spheres into the air, catching them as their occupants emerged. Bulbasaur, a dinosaur-like Pokémon with a bulb on it's back, and Squirtle, a small, turtle like Pokémon of the Water variety, plopped down on their Trainer's shoulders, joining their friend, Pikachu, the electric mouse Pokémon who was begging his trainer to play along with them. Ash willingly complied and joined in with the antics of his companions. Unbeknownst to him, he was being stared at, too.

Misty locked her eyes on Ash, unaware of the fact that he had been doing the same thing a few seconds ago. She watched the young teenager as he hung onto one of Lapras' spikes with one hand while trying to snatch his cap away from his Pokémon, who were proving to be more than a match for him in a game of "Three-Way Keep-Away". She basked in the aura of serenity that her best friend continuously emitted, and smiled along with Ash and his Pokémon.

The spray kicked up by his Lapras spread water all over them. As Misty watched Ash play with his Pokémon, she couldn't help but notice that the moisture was making his black T-shirt (worn under a blue vest) stick to his body, making his sleek, chiseled muscles even more apparent. She gawked inwardly at how handsome he looked, even in his common display of playfulness.

God, how far did I have to fall into this crush? Thought Misty. I'm surprised he hasn't figured it out from all the times that my feelings have practically gone and slapped him across his cute little face! Huh, I knew Ash was dense, but I never even imagined he could be that clueless! Well, it's not like I can get out of this crush. Who said I even want to? We're already best friends, and we travel together, so this situation can only get better, right? She sighed as she watched him, continuously grabbing toward his three Pokémon, trying to reclaim his treasured Pokémon League cap. After an especially powerful lunge, Ash lost his footing and fell towards the water, unnoticed by Misty, who had turned her eyes back to her Pokémon, or Tracey, who was busy sketching the Pidgey that flew above them. The only thing that stopped him from falling into the water was one of his hands, clinging for dear life to that same spike.

"Guys, I hate to bother you, but COULD YOU GIVE ME A HAND HERE? I'M FALLING OFF OF LAPRAS FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE!" yelled Ash to his occupied friends.

Misty looked up from her Pokémon, an air of annoyance evident on her face. "I've got this one, Tracey," she said to the young artist sitting near her. "Knock yourself out, Misty," he replied casually.

As Misty kneeled to pull Ash up onto Lapras, she grabbed his hand, which had grown sweaty from exertion. Both teens felt sparks tingling from their hands, down their arms, and all over their bodies. Their eyes swung around from their positions and locked onto each other. They stood there, paralyzed as if emerging from one of Pikachu's Thunderbolt attacks, staring at each other, lost in one-another's eyes.

Hey, why can't I move! Thought Misty. This is too weird. What's going on? Ash's hands are slipping out of mine, and I'm sitting here like an idiot, glued to the spot! What am I supposed to do now?

Why am I not pulling myself up instead of hanging here frozen? Thought Ash. Why am I frozen in the first place?

"Um, Misty?" said Ash, breaking their trance. "Could you please stop staring at me like that and pull me up? I'm still falling off of Lapras if you haven't noticed!"

Misty, still a bit shaken, replied as she pulled him onto his ferrying Pokémon "Uh, sure. Ash, no problem."

After they were both settled down on top of Lapras again, Misty started doing what she did on a regular basis (every five minutes or so to be exact): making fun of Ash's every mistake to make everyone think that she doesn't have a crush on him, or at least that's what she called it.

"You know, Ash, maybe if you weren't so clumsy and childish, this journey of ours would be going on a lot faster than it is right now. But, alas, me and everyone else traveling with you has to get used to a life of getting lost and sleeping in those confounded sleeping bags every night!" said Misty with a devilish grin on her face.

"Hey, maybe if Mrs. Whine-a-lot here could be quiet for five seconds, I could concentrate on the map a lot better and get lost less often!" retorted Ash. The trap had worked. He fell into it hook, line, and stinker!

"Yeah, right! Like I'm ever trusting you with the road map again!" Muttered Misty, folding her arms.

"From my point of view, you never had it in the first place! And if you did have it, we would never find our way around Kanto, or the Orange Islands for that matter!" said Ash, becoming very irritated

"Huh, I'll bet you that I would do a much better job navigating than you if I had the map!" said Misty with a hopeful glance to the blue heavens above their heads

"Aha! So you are admitting that I am in control of the map!" yelled Ash triumphantly, taking a step towards his adversary in the debate.

"No I'm not! Why would I ever even think that you had control over the map?" exclaimed Misty, also taking a step toward Ash on the cramped shell.

"Oh yeah then what did 'If I had the map' sound like to you?" said Ash, taking another step.

"When I said that I didn't mean that you had it, I meant to say that, um… Tracey is in control of the map!" retorted Misty, pointing a finger at the boy seated against Lapras' neck.

Tracey held his hands up defensively, shaking his head "Hey! Don't pull me into this! This is your fight, and you are going to solve it on your own!"

Misty and Ash turned their heads "STAY OUT OF THIS!" they yelled in unison.

"As I was saying, I am still the navigator in this group!" said Ash with a snarl.

"What have we been discussing for the last half hour, Ash? YOU ARE NOT IN CONTROL OF THE DIRECTION TAKEN BY THIS GROUP!" Misty snarled back, steam rising from her ears.

"I AM TOO!"

"ARE NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"ARE NOT!"

"ARE TOO!"

"ASH, YOU ARE ASKING FOR A TASTE OF MY MALLET, AND THAT IS NEVER PRETTY!"

Ash, now stepping backwards held up his hands defensively, trying to calm down the rampaging Misty knowing perfectly the extent of her devastating power. "Hey, Misty, you know I was just joking, right? You can be in control of the map, the campgrounds, and anything else you want. Just put down that large Mallet nice and easy… NO! WAIT! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!"

"Wow, and Misty Waterflower has set a new record in the sport of Malletry!" yelled Tracey in an announcer imitation, temporarily looking up from his work.

As Squirtle swam to retrieve its Trainer, who was flying SEVENTY-FIVE feet above their heads after a smack from Misty's formidable Mallet, which was being broken in two by the hands of it's very owner, a certain artist looked on as he finished his newest work of art. Tracey slapped a damp hand to his forehead in mock desperation.

What the heck am I supposed to do with those two? Will they ever confess their true feelings to each other? Ah, it'll do for a good laugh! He thought with a shake of his head, perfectly aware of the true feelings locked inside the hearts of his two young friends, almost certain that they would never be set free.

" Hey, Tracey!" hollered Ash, clutching his head as he climbed out of the water, aided by his faithful Squirtle.

"Yeah, Ash" replied Tracey, breaking from his train of thought to look at his friend.

"What's the name of the island we're heading for?" Ash requested of the young artist, avoiding the venomous eyes of Misty as he recalled Bulbasaur and Squirtle. The two Pokémon disappeared into their Pokéballs in a flash of red light.

"Well, let's take a look at the map…" the mention of the word made Ash flinch.

"Hmm… Aha! Here it is!" said Tracey, pointing to a dot on the map. "It's an island by the name of Trovita, and by the looks of it, it seems to be a tropical island."

"Does it really matter what the darn island is called! I don't care if it's Trovita, Pummelo, or Shamouti Island! All that matters is that it has showers and actual beds instead of sleeping bags! Hey, wait a minute! Did you just say that it's a tropical island…!" yelled Misty from the edge of Lapras' shell.

"Don't start up on that subject again, Misty Kasumi Waterflower!" yelled Ash, pointing his free hand at her menacingly cutting off her dreams of the island abruptly.

"I start whatever I want, Ashton Satoshi Ketchum!" yelled Misty, turning to face her quarry.

"Will you two ever stop these stupid, pointless arguments!" yelled Tracey over their banter

The two arguing trainers turned their heads simultaneously to face the intruder.

"STAY OUT OF THIS, TRACEY!" They roared in his face once again, almost blowing him off of the shell this time.

Tracey, who had gone back to examining the map, spoke up. "Hey, Ash!'

Ash, who was verbally grappling with Misty at the moment, turned his head toward his friend. "What now, Tracey?"

"Just a small piece of information I found on the map, something you might want to know."

"Yeah?" Ash egged him on as he flinched again at the word.

"It seems that the Gym Leader on this Island, Rudy Genova," continued Tracey, "submits the trainers who challenge him to a challenge of his own. Only by completing this challenge can the trainers compete with Rudy in an actual Pokémon battle."

"Does it say what type of challenge he issues?" said Ash with a hopeful stare towards Tracey.

"Nope." said the artist. "It just says that he makes these challenges on the fly, so you should expect the unexpected."

"Oh, man!" said a dejected Ash "Not only do I have to complete a challenge to face this Gym Leader, it's a challenge that I can't even prepare for!"

"Well, that little detail seemed to knock the wind out of your sails, Mr. Pokémon Master!" said Misty, knocking ash deeper into his misery.

"Are you trying to make me feel better?" asked Ash sarcastically. "Because it didn't work."

"What gave you that crazy idea?" asked Misty.

"I guess you don't pick up on sarcasm very well, either." Said Ash, beginning to giggle. "And you call me dense!"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME!" asked Misty in suppressed rage, her ears whistling like twin teapots, her face almost matching orange hue of her hair as she reached into her bag of torture instruments.

"Umm, ehehe, should I start running now?" mumbled a terror-stricken Ash.

"Where do you think you can run, Ashy-boy?" said Misty, advancing on the poor boy, raising her mallet once again.

"Oh boy, this does not look good for Ash!" said Tracey, shaking his head gravely.

The next few events happened in slow motion. Misty swung her Mallet down, HARD. Ash rolled out of the way and was stopped by one of Lapras' spikes. The impact of Misty's Mallet on Lapras' back made the Pokémon reel back, catapulting the three unlucky trainers into the water.

"I t-t-told you two m-m-millions of times that your useless f-f-f-f-fighting would only cause t-t-trouble to you and the p-p-p-people around you, n-n-n-namely me!" yelled Tracey as he floundered about in the cold water. "N-n-now that I've p-p-p-proven my point, maybe you t-t-t-two will learn to keep your cool during future arguments!"

"PUT A S-S-SOCK IN IT, T-T-TRACEY!" Ash and Misty yelled furiously from ten yards away also stuttering from the effects of the icy water. Lapras laughed heartily as she swam back to pick up her cargo.

Unnoticed by Ash, Misty, or Tracey, who were drying themselves off on Lapras' back, (mostly by laying in the hot sun on Lapras' hot shell), a small blot appeared on the horizon, steadily growing larger as the three teens and their Pokémon traversed the vast sea connecting the Orange Islands.

"Hey, does it feel like were forgetting something to you guys?" asked Misty, A clueless expression on her face.

"No, but I do kinda feel like I left my legs back there…" said Ash with a careless tone.

"TOOOOOOOOOOOGEEEEEPRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

"Oh…my…gosh. TOOOOOGEEEEEEEPIIIIIIIIIII! YEEEEEEEEEEEHOWOWOOOOOOWOUCH!" yelled Misty as she jumped carelessly into the frigid water once again.

"Hey, Tracey, do you think Misty's finally cracked?" asked Ash as he watched his friend swimming to retrieve her baby Pokémon.

"Actually, I think she's been cracked ever since you started this journey, Ash." answered the artist.

What am I saying? I love that redhead to death! Thought Ash as he tore at his hair.

"Hey guys! I got Togepi! Now there's just one problem…" yelled Misty from her position.

"Yeah, what's that?" asked Tracey.

"HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO GET BACK!" bellowed Misty, wobbling unstably in the water, holding Togepi above the waves as it cried.

"That's fairly simple, Misty. You get back here the same way you got out there. YOU SWIM!" yelled Ash smugly from his seat.

Misty glared daggers at Ash. "You know, once I get back, I'll wipe that smile off your face with my Mallet!" she said.

"Oh, Misty, my poor, naïve friend, I would just love to see you try!"

Yep, all in a day's work for your average trio of travelers!

So, What did you think of that, huh? I know the wait on updates has been long, but I haven't had much time to write, so give a dog a bone, here! I'm currently about halfway through the second chapter, and I will probably post it before the end of the month. Oh, and as a heads up, I might be changing my pen name soon. And by the by... COULD YOU ALL PLEASE READ & REVIEW! (Tell your friends too! I'm desperately looking for some publicity!)