This is a one shot Pokeshipping story inspired from the song 'Somewhere Only We Know' from Keane's first album 'Hopes and Fears."
Somewhere Only We Know
by – d i n o b o t
xXx
simple – free from complexity
reliance – relying on another for support; having or showing dependence
xXx
Things were never simple for Ash Ketchum.
"Mime! Mime! Mime! Mime! Mime! Mime! Mime! Mime!"
Ash screamed as his hair was sucked halfway in by the vacuum cleaner. Mimey chanted his name, obliviously running over Ash's bed while tending his morning cleaning routine.
The bewildered boy held his aching head and groaned, lying back onto his pillow. The chubby mime Pokémon merely smiled and trotted out to clean the rest of the house, humming his name cheerily to himself.
"What a way to start the morning," Ash mumbled, pulling his pillow over his face. The sunlight flooded into his room through the open curtain window. The morning refused to wait for Ash and impatiently left him. He had many chores to accomplish today, and he had every intention to get up early and get a jump on them. Waking up at noon certainly did not help. Good intentions sound simple in theory, bhat else would you expect from Ash Ketchum?
He sluggishly pulled himself out of bed and dressed. Shirt, jeans, socks, then lastly adorned his jacket and trademark League hat.
Delia busily worked in the kitchen, quietly singing to herself as she washed the breakfast dishes. She did not notice her half-asleep famished boy situate himself at the table, waiting to be noticed. She glanced toward his way as he sat wondering where the breakfast spread had gone. Delia laughed quietly to herself.
"Mom? Uh…where's the food?" he asked as his stomach rudely interrupted him.
Delia smiled and waved a motherly finger. "I had breakfast out hours ago dear and you missed it. If you want something to eat you're going to have to make it yourself."
"What?" Ash was never one for self sufficiency, especially against the daunting task of making an actual meal for himself -- edible too. He sighed, over the years he did take Brock's fine culinary skills for granted.
He bowed his head and dragged his feet to the kitchen. Under normal circumstances Delia would have waited night and day on her only son's whim, but those days were over. Ash had to learn the gems of responsibility and maturity. She peered into the kitchen from the living room. So much for keeping the kitchen clean.
She did however lay out the ingredients to assemble a basic meal. Ash looked at them lying stubbornly on the counter. He scratched his head -- somehow, someway he had to figure out how to make all those different parts into food. Food with taste.
He frowned as he took inventory. "Eggs, bacon, bread, juice, sausage, vegetable oil, cheese, pancake-mix…" There was certainly enough material to make many dishes to satisfy a boy's nagging hunger. But what goes well with scrambled eggs? How long should the bacon be cooked? Where is the maple syrup for the pancakes? Ash shook his head in frustration, grabbed all the ingredients in one giant arm full and headed toward the stove.
So much for simplicity.
"Corsola, Spike Cannon!"
The pinkish-cream coral Pokémon aimed its bright glowing spikes towards its opponent with dozens of shining pin needles blasting from Corsola's rock-like body.
The opposing trainer confidently ordered the counter.
"Magmar, smog now!"
Magmar grunted its name, spewing a thick black smoke from its beak, making the attack useless under the foggy barrier. The Gym Leader growled to herself.
"Fire Punch!" the challenger shouted. Immediately, a fiery hue surrounded Magmar's fists as it barreled down towards its foe.
Misty hesitated for a moment before issuing the counter-attack.
"Corsola! Dive under water!" Corsola responded just in time, plunging into the water just as Magmar landed on the floating pad Corsola was on.
"You can't win if my Corsola stays under water! Never send fire to cool water Pokémon down!" Misty boasted.
The countenance of the challenger did not waiver. He confidently smirked as he ordered his Pokémon.
"Magmar, Overheat! Make it good!"
Magmar grunted again, focusing its energy to raise the temperature of the whole battlefield. A giant flame-like cloud filled the arena evaporating all the water in the pool, leaving Corsola exposed, stripping the advantage from Misty's grasp. She could only helplessly watch as the challenger commanded the final attack.
"Fire Blast!"
It was done. Corsola lay defeated on the bottom of the pool, whimpering a few last strays of strength. Misty recalled her valiant Pokémon and smiled as she put it back onto her belt.
"Thanks Corsola, you deserve a good rest," she whispered.
"One more and I get the badge! Maybe you should forfeit this next one!" the challenger smugly taunted.
"Not on your life!" Misty yelled, matching his intensity. "You may think you're a pretty hot trainer defeating my water Pokémon, but nobody has yet to beat this Pokémon!" Misty took out her last Pokéball and delicately kissed it.
She tossed it softly in the air. "Gyrados, I choose--"
A burst of light from another source interrupted her. Misty looked around with Gyrados' unopened poke ball in her hand.
A yellow duck stared dumbly into her face.
"Psye?"
"Psyduck!" she screamed. "Get back into your poke ball this instant!"
"Hey, the Gym Leader isn't allowed to recall any of her Pokémon!" the challenger yelled just as Misty aimed the Pokeball to recall her disobedient bird. She sighed. He was right, she had to battle by the rules.
"Fine. Okay, Psyduck just like we've been practicing... for the millionth time," she mumbled under her breath. "Water Gun, now!"
"Psye?" Psyduck cocked its head to one side.
"Ahh, Psyduck!" Misty screamed, grabbing her head like a crate of exploding dynamite. "You're giving me a headache!"
The challenger grinned. "Pitiful! This match is mine!" One small ember attack sent the water Pokémon scurrying to its trainer with tears welling in its eyes. Misty shook her head and knelt down to comfort her fleeing Pokémon.
"It's not your fault. You did your best," she patted it on its head.
Misty faced her victorious opponent. She reached into her pocket, pulled out the Cascade Badge and tossed it across the battle field. The challenger snatched it out of the air, shot her an arrogant smile and exited the Cerulean Gym.
Misty sat on the edge of the pool, dangling her legs over the edge. A small timing valve opened filling the pool with water again. Psyduck cautiously nudged her side, obviously still embarrassed and hurt.
"Oh, it's okay," she managed a weak smile. "Why don't you go play with the other Pokémon?" Psyduck murmured a response then scurried its stubby legs across the tile floor.
Misty softly kicked her feet underneath the rippling water. As much as she loved her Pokémon she could not use it in battle.
She could not rely on it.
"Professor Oak!" Ash yelled as he furiously flipped through the pages of a small manual. He sighed and sat back on the tile floor of the lab.
"Something wrong, Ash?" Professor Oak asked. Ash waved the manual back and forth in front of him.
"When I agreed to help you I didn't think I'd be tinkering with your stupid machines" he complained, "I can't do this!"
Professor Oak shook his head. "Nonsense," he assured him. "You're young, you can do it. Besides, don't tell me an accomplished boy like you is going to be stopped by a small obstacle like my Pokémon Database."
Ash rolled his eyes. "Computers are too complicated. Can't I do something else?" He asked picking himself off the ground away from the open guts of the computer system.
"Well, I suppose you can help with my Pokémon research," Professor Oak suggested.
Ash's ears perked at the thought; finally, something of his specialty. "Great, what are you doing?" he peered over a nearby desk cluttered with scribbled papers.
"Well, currently I'm measuring the metabolic rate of Dragon Type Pokémon and their evolution types. I've found, quite interestingly Dragon Type Pokémon have the highest metabolism of any other type of Pokémon."
"Fascinating," Ash sarcastically replied.
Professor Oak frowned. "I'm sorry if I'm boring you, my boy. Pokémon are my life and at times it can be rather complex."
"But that's just the thing," Ash protest. "Pokémon aren't supposed to be complicated. You train with them and you start to know them."
"Meaning…" Oak vouched for more.
"Meaning," Ash tried to conjure up the right words. "I mean, Pokémon training is about intuition and instinct. You just know what's right and what's wrong because you know it…" Ash pointed to his gut. "I know it here."
"I appreciate you're views, Ash" Professor Oak commended him. "But, you can't measure instinct, you can't put a value on intuition. I'm afraid sometimes this is all we have" he said pointing to his scribbled notes.
"Yeah, I guess" Ash sighed. "I'll just go feed the Pokémon outside."
The suggestion seemed to appease both sides for the moment. Ash solemnly walked to the front leaving the Professor diligently studying his notes. After his tasks, Ash shut the door behind him and sat on the porch step. He deeply exhaled trying to sooth his thoughts. He briefly peered into the back of his eyelids before slowly getting up and walked away alone.
"Daisy? Violet? Lilly?" Misty yelled.
The hallway echo was her only reply. She muttered to herself, glaring at her wrist watch. Her sisters were late – again. "I don't believe this," Misty groaned annoyingly. "Just one day, one lousy day!" Misty despised waiting.
The doors of the Gym finally opened. Daisy, Violet and Lilly entered carrying arms full of shopping bags and half drunken coffee cups. They giggled among themselves walking towards the increasingly impatient redhead.
"Hey, sis what's up?" Lilly asked.
"You're late, that's what's up" Misty sarcastically responded.
"Oh, you worry too much" Violet chimed, "we had quite a day today" she said flaunting her hundreds of dollars of clothes and hair supplies."
"You seem upset, sis?" Daisy asked.
"I'm upset because you said you guys would cover for me at the Gym today!" Misty yelled. "That was hours ago!"
"Whoa, little sister," Daisy tried to calm her down. "I said we'd drop by, I didn't say we'd take over or anything."
Misty ran her hands through her hair. "What are you saying? You're not going to take today's shift?"
"Please, Misty" Violet waved a finger. "We just got manicures; we can't be like, handling Pokémon today."
"Besides" Lilly started, "You're better at training than the three of us, I think you got it under control. Ciao!"
"Ciao, Misty!" the other two repeated ears glued to their cell phones.
"But…" Misty tried to start; but it was too late. The three had already left to the upstairs apartment on the second floor of the Gym.
Misty lowered her head, walking back to the battling area. Trust was never part of her family's equation.
"Yes, thank you. Maybe next time. I'm sure it is. Okay, bye." Ash clicked the phone back on its receiver. He sighed loudly and slouched on his coach. He closed his eyes and pulled the bill of his hat over his face.
"Ash, dear who was on the phone?" Delia asked while dusting the furniture.
"Oh, that? Just another reporter begging for an interview."
"How many does that make this week?"
"Too many," Ash sighed. "I really hate all this," and pushed up his hat.
"Honey, what did you think was going to happen?" she asked. "You didn't think things were just going to stay the same, did you?"
"Well, no" Ash admitted. "It's just everywhere I go there's someone there wanting this or wanting that from me. My email and voice mails have been full for weeks. It's all too complicated."
"Remember son, everything comes with at least some sort of sacrifice."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," he faintly agreed.
A series of knocks at the door interrupted their conversation. Ash and Delia turned their attention to the front. A sudden increase of noise approached from the outside.
"Now who could that be?" Delia wondered as she rose. She got on her tip toes squinting through the eye hole of the door.
"Oh, my" she gasped.
"What is it?!"
"I'm afraid they tracked you down!"
Ash quickly jumped to his feet. "What do I do?"
"Go out the back, I'll just tell them you aren't here."
Ash cautiously peered out the window. The constant barrage of cameras forced him away. He agreed with his mother.
"Where should I go?"
"Take the bike and lay low for a couple of hours."
"Uh, okay," Ash said, his mind whirling of where to find a place of refuge.
She stopped him. "While you're out could you get something for dinner, please?"
"What? Really?" Ash whined to her impulsive request.
Delia glared a motherly eye at her son. He caved. He opened the back window and slipped away. Ducking out of ones own home – that's one way to complicate your life.
Misty shut the door to her room. She collapsed on her bed, completely exhausted not even bothering to kick off her shoes. She struggled to turn and face the ceiling, a testament to how worn out she felt. Her eyes remained closed like they were made from cement.
"I can't—I can't do this anymore," Misty whispered. She knew being leader of an Official Pokémon League Gym had its challenges and was an enormous responsibility. But she never thought it would all fall on her shoulders.
Since assuming the head of the Gym there was little time for herself. Day in and day out Misty remained constantly working. There was her Pokémon, trying to keep them fresh and healthy. She had to take care of them, train them and give them the appropriate attention. Not to mention the seemingly millions of pounds of food she bought for them every week.
Then there was the never ending supply of arrogant upstart trainers challenging her for a battle; of course League rules demanded she never turn down a challenge. The worst part was when she would lose to an obvious inferior trainer because her mind was on paying next month's bill rather than the battle.
Something around the Gym would always break seemingly on cue. If it wasn't cleaning the giant aquarium (which she loathed every week) it was patching a leak on the roof or fixing that stubbornly broken window.
Misty never realized the ungodly amount of office work that came with being a Gym Leader. There were income papers, invoice statements, audits, letters, meetings to schedule and appointments to keep.
On top of all of it was her constant struggle to find eight hours a day for sleep (although for Misty it was more like five). Her sisters only visited on occasion and offered zero help. The Gym life definitely wasn't how she imagined it to be.
Misty rose from her bed. She opened her drawers and stuffed some clothes in a backpack. In one giant motion with her forearm she swept all her makeup gear into her bag. She grabbed her case of Poke balls and lip gloss.
"Can't forget this," Misty smirked and daubed her lips with a light cherry flavor. It was her favorite.
She locked the door to the gym, pocketed the keys and walked away without a second thought.
A few small tugs. That is all it took.
Ash ran to the drenched girl at the end of his line lying on the grass. If it were any other two people it would have started normally. Then again, nothing about them ever hinted of normalcy.
"Hey, are you alright, lady?" he knelt beside her.
"Yeah, I'm fine" she managed to say, coughing up the last of the water. She brushed back her fiery bangs from covering her face, revealing a set of brilliant sparking blue eyes.
Ash's concern immediately turned to shock.
"Oh my goodness... Misty?"
"What!?" She coughed again and pushed him away. "Just let me breathe a second, will ya?!"
She waited until her breathing returned to a normal pace. Misty wiped her face with her palm (which didn't do a thing) and stared at the dumbfounded boy in front of her.
"It's me... Ash."
"I know it's you, Ash!" she scoffed. "I'm not stupid!"
"Well, yeah – but, I…" he fumbled over his response. "Misty, what are you doing here?"
"What am I doing here!?" Misty shouted. "I'll tell you: Being chased by a freaking huge swarm of Beedrill, that's what! I walked right into one of their stupid, buzzing insect nests! They chased me and I fell into the river! What the hell are Beedrill doing here this time of year anyway?"
"Uh…its Beedrill season" Ash informed her.
"Don't start with me, Ash Ketchum!" she yelled. "Not unless you want to end up in that river!"
Ash smirked, he knew better. He apologized under his breath.
"Gosh, could this day get any worst" Misty grumbled. She picked herself up, wringing the excess water out from the front part of her yellow shirt. Misty leaned against a soft rock and looked around.
"What are you doing here, Ash?"
"Uh, well…" Ash stammered embarrassed realizing his circumstances were less dramatic than hers. He rubbed the back of his head with his right hand.
"I was, uh, fishing for tonight's dinner," he finally managed to reply.
"You? Fishing?" she asked for conformation. Misty took a second glance then a third one. Next to Ash Ketchum was a rusty old fishing pole, no baits or traps and a few inept Majikarp in a small bucket of water. That was it.
A soft pause gave her enough time to process it.
Suddenly, Misty burst into laugher. She sank off the rock she was on and fell to the dirt rolling uncontrollably gripping her sides from splitting.
Ash remained speechless.
"Oh man," she said through her giggling. "I've had just about the worst day of my life, but that; that is hilarious!" Another wave of laughter engulfed her.
"What do you mean?" he obliviously asked.
Misty finally became audible and wiped away a tear. "Ash, don't you remember anything about Majikarp?"
"Uh," Ash pondered. "They're not very good swimmers that's for sure."
"Well, yeah," Misty said trying to maintain herself. "But, Majikarp are just scales and bones. They have no meat to them!"
"Oh, right" Ash looked down in embarrassment. "Well, there goes two hours for nothing." He took the pale and threw the useless Majikarp back much to Misty's amusement. She cleared her throat in attempt to ebb her fun.
"Wanna explain your comment earlier?" Ash said as he sat across from her.
"What do you mean?" Misty lobbied for more.
"You said this was 'the worst day of my life'" Ash said in a mocking voice.
Misty tensed to his surprisingly acute memory. "Oh that," she brushed it off. "It was nothing." Misty peered into the corner of her eye. Ash didn't buy it.
"Fine," she surrendered. "It's nothing, really" she said again, "same old stuff."
"How's the Gym?"
"Good," she said before hesitating. "It's tiring and the hours suck; not a very flexible life."
"Aren't your sisters there to help you?" Ash inquired.
Misty let out a long sigh. "Yeah, they should be. But they're more concerned with shopping and performing than training Pokémon. I pretty much have the bulk of the load."
"Yeah, but you're living your dream," Ash reminded her. "How many people get to do that?"
"Not many, I guess" Misty stoically agreed. "I just wish I had a little more help. You know someone to take the weekends, or someone to handle the paper work."
"Sure," Ash softly agreed
"I never thought if I lived my dream I'd have to do it all by myself," Misty sighed almost realizing it as soon as she said it.
"Yeah, I understand" Ash said.
Misty peered back to him. "No you don't! Please, 'Mr. Pokémon Master with no care in the world'" Misty said in a mocking voice. "Everyone saw you in that last Championship battle – it was broadcast on every channel. Hell, I even saw the highlights on the news."
Ash chuckled "You're point?"
"My point is it must be hard to deal with all that fame, all that prestige and all that money" she said sarcastically. "Ash Ketchum: the youngest Pokémon Master. Every guy wants to be you and every girl wants to be with you. You're life is perfect."
"That's not true," Ash said after a short pause. "Things didn't really go the way I planned."
"Like what?"
"Misty, my life has gotten so stressful the last few months. I have to meet all these people I don't know, I have to attend all these meeting I don't understand. I have to go through interview after interview every single week! Some reporters ambushed the house earlier today! I hardly have anytime for myself. I never thought if I lived my dream it would be so—"
"Complicated?" Misty finished his thought.
Ash agreed silently. "Things were so much simpler back then. It was so easy when I started out with you and Brock. We trained, battled, slept, traveled—"
"Fought?" Misty interrupted him again.
Ash laughed; she did it again. "We did fight a lot, didn't we?"
"All the time!" Misty rolled her head back as if remembering every single fight in its entirety. "I still can't believe you didn't get sick of me."
"Who said I didn't" Ash chuckled. Misty shot him a warning. Ash silently apologized.
"Still, with us it was simple. We fought, ate, walked, talked—"
"When did we talk, exactly?" Misty asked trying to conjure up a memory of her seriously talking to Ash Ketchum.
"Okay," Ash tried to backtrack. "We didn't necessarily do that. But it was effortless, it was honest and—" he paused and stared into Misty's eyes, "comfortable."
Misty looked down, blushing under her fiery hair. "You know, I miss those years with you and Brock traveling the world too. No matter what happened I could count on you, I could, you know—"
"Rely on me?"
The statement gave Misty chills. She softly brushed her bangs back, tucking them behind her ear.
"What about all the 'ignorance' and 'lazy' remarks you gave me?"
"Oh, I still meant those" Misty giggled, "but I knew for a certainty if I went to sleep that night I'd wake up and see you there—always."
"Wow," Ash exclaimed. Never had Misty been so candid with him, or anyone for that matter. He cherished it.
Ash joined Misty leaning against the smooth rock. He softly sighed viewing the calm surroundings. The warm evening breeze whistled through the leaves. The sun sunk midway through the horizon igniting the sky with a brilliant shade of vermillion and fuchsia. The water receded its agitation, flowing evenly in the riverbed. It made them both calm, and for Ash Ketchum an epiphany.
"I just realized something," Ash thought out loud. "The two of us have been here before."
"What do you mean?" Misty asked.
"I think this is the same place we met. You know, when you fished me out of the river? Don't you remember?"
"I remember you stealing my bike," Misty gave him a wry smirk.
Ash shuddered at the thought. "Uh, don't remind me about that. I still have nightmares of you pestering me about that bike."
"Ha!" Misty laughed cynically. "Well, if you would've paid me back sooner I wouldn't have had to do that, now would I?"
"Will you let me finish my thought, please?" Ash said annoyed. Misty withdrew her previous comment.
"It's the only place that only you and I know."
"Really?" Misty thought to herself. "That can't be right."
"Think about it," Ash told her.
She did. Pikachu was too disoriented to know where he was. They met Brock a week after they met. The incident wasn't witnessed by Gary or Tracey. They hadn't even met May, Max or Dawn. Delia and Professor Oak were in Pallet at the time and there was no way Misty's sisters were going to be caught dead near a small town like Pallet.
"There are a few minor differences though," Ash began. "This time you fell into the river and I fished you out!"
"Yeah, I might just steal your bike too," Misty laughed. "But you're right, Ash" she grinned. "I guess no matter how much we change or how much our careers change we have this – all to ourselves."
Ash smiled and stood up. He took the outstretched hand of Misty's and helped her to her feet.
"It's getting late. Mom is probably wondering where I am. Why don't you come back with me?"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, my Mom will be so glad to see you again, it's been forever. Plus, I'd like for you to be there too."
"I'd like that too," Misty blushed. She softly hugged him sliding her arms around his lower back. Ash stood rigid at first, then hugged her back. They embraced a few precious moments before releasing. Misty looked up and smiled at Ash.
"What?" he asked.
Misty softly shook her head. "Nothing. Just, thank you for being – you."
"Thank you for being you, too."
The two gathered their things and headed down the path towards Pallet. The two walked evenly beside each other. Ash gently put his arm around her. He tenderly smiled; it was calm, natural and simple.
Misty rested her head on his shoulder. His presence generated warmth she never thought attainable. She believed in Ash's innocence, trusted in his sincere dependence. It made her safe. Simplicity at last. Reliance at last.
And cherry lips never tasted so good before.
end
Somewhere only we know
I walked across an empty land
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand
I felt the earth beneath my feet
Sat by the river and it made me complete
Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin
I came across a fallen tree
I felt the branches of it looking at me?
Is this the place we used to love?
Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?
Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin
So if you have a minute why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
Somewhere only we know?
Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin
So if you have a minute why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
So why don't we go
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
Somewhere only we know?
- Keane, Hopes and Fears