PAST-RECALLS AND PREPARATIONS
Chapter Three


It was only eight o' clock in the morning when the three young Trainers have already started preparing for the day. They had a lot on their to-do list, with Club Alaura being one of the main priorities. Oh, and grocery shopping. Arceus forbid that they ever become irresponsible adults and forget to shop for food and supplies.

"Okay, and we'll need some fresh lettuce and olives for the salad. Oh, and we shouldn't forget the chicken, the cream cheese, and lemons…" May hovered swiftly from one aisle to the other, Blaziken helping her grab most of the items. At this rate, they could finish the groceries in less than an hour.

"Damn, remind me to bring May when I go grocery shopping," Dawn told Misty who watched sleepily watched their friend go about the shopping list. "Yeah, especially for Christmas." The two friends merely followed the brunette young woman wherever she went, like children to their mother. As if knowing what they exactly needed, she breezily examined what products or items each aisle had to offer, not even going back to check twice. Even the payment at the counter seemed all too quick. It did not even take about forty-five minutes to get the entire job done.

"I'm used to chores, all right?" May said as she licked on the vanilla ice cream her friends had promised her. "And so what? It's an asset."

The girls decided to walk back to their hotel room with the bagged groceries at hand. It seemed like a fine morning with the weather being so inviting, and the fresh calm breeze cooling their faces. LaRousse City never had appeared so beautiful in a morning such as this.

"We didn't say it was wrong," Misty responded. "In fact, we think it's really awesome!"

"Yeah, it IS an asset of yours," giggled Dawn. "A great big one."

"I know exactly what you're thinking, Dawn. Stop thinking it!"

"How can I? I've got a most sexy mind. My imagination's the limit."

Misty raised a brow. "Were you seriously just thinking of May's a–!" The red-haired young woman was cut off as she saw a most familiar raven-haired man cross the street with a Pikachu by his shoulder. "No, i-it can't be… It can't be him…"

Dawn and May leaned in closer to their stammering friend.

"Hey, uh, Misty? Wasn't that just Ash Ketchum who crossed the street?" Dawn muttered.

"Dawn! Stop confirming it! I know it's that fucking idiot! I just didn't want to believe myself!"

May chuckled. "Well, why don't you go say 'hello'? You can't be so grumpy in such a beautiful day!"

"The mere sight of him ruined my day!" Misty hissed. "This is our vacation! This is MY vacation! I wouldn't have some gawky stupid ass idiot come by following me and ruining every moment of it."

The two friends were wide-eyed in surprise.

"Whoa… What the-! Misty, calm down!" May said as she did her best to compose her friend. "You just went from zero to a hundred there! What happened?"

"Yeah? What has Ketchum done this time that you hate him so much?"

"Where has all this anger come from?"

Misty breathed out slowly. "I-I… really don't know. I don't know why that, every time I see his stupid cap and that stupid hair, I just, I go crazy."

"Hasn't it been, like, years Misty?" Dawn said, placing her hands by her hips. "You were children for fuck's sake." The bluenette then looked about, hoping no one was around to see a grown woman throw a tantrum. Sighing, she gave her a friend an encouraging rub on the back. "Misty, why don't we all just say 'hi', then? All right? Then maybe May and I could fix up the groceries back at the hotel."

"And we'll do the cooking too," smiled May. "Just spend some of your sweet time with Ash. You know, get to know how both of you are faring with life."

Misty narrowed her brows. "You're both leaving me alone with him?!"

"MISTY!"

"Fine… sheesh, fine. Okay." Misty had managed to finally compose herself. Goodness, how can one guy drive me from calm seas to raging storm by just passing by the pedestrian lane? She then remembered that they still had some things to do for tomorrow night's clubbing. "Wait! What about our clothes shopping?"

"Oh, don't worry about it. We can meet later in the afternoon at one of the malls," reassured Dawn. "Maybe around two-thirty? Hope that's enough time for you and Ash." May gave a light giggle at this.

"Dawn, I don't know how your fucking mind works." Misty sent her friend a glare as shook her head. Crossing her arms over her chest, she sighed. "But hey, yeah. It's most probably for the best to just go and say 'hi'."

"Cut the crap and just go, Misty." May was being a bit impatient. She grabbed the groceries from the redhead and gave her a friend a knowing smirk before leaving off towards the hotel with Dawn. "I honestly think she just misses him that bad, that's why she's gone all beast-mode," she whispered.

"Hey! And where the fuck are you two going?! You're supposed to be coming with me!" Misty yelled, realizing her friends were leaving her already.

"We changed our minds!" Dawn yelled from the distance.

Seeing as if she had no choice, Misty groaned. Releasing a held sigh to clear her thoughts, she headed to the small branded Café where she had just seen Ash Ketchum enter.

"Hmm… give me a single shot Cappuccino," the raven haired Pokémon Trainer ordered. "Oh, and one slice of custard cake, please."

The barista jotted down his order on a small notebook and requested him to wait by the side. She then asked for the next in line to give their order next.

"I'll have what he just ordered, minus the cake."

Overhearing such a most familiar voice order the same caffeinated beverage, Ash glanced over to give a quick look. Eyes widened and mouth agape, he was in total shock to see that the young woman was none other than the Cerulean City Gym Leader and one of his closest and best friends, Misty Waterflower.

"MISTY!" boomed his ever-so-loud voice. "I can't believe it! You're here! In Hoenn!"

"Y-Yeah, hi Ash," she smiled sheepishly. "It's been a long time. You quite certainly have changed."

And indeed, the change was evident. Though he still wore a cap to hide his messy black hair, Ash had on a more semi casual look, making him appear a lot more mature. He had on a deep blue polo folded up to his elbow that covered his plain black shirt, and some baggy denim jeans that were matched with a pair of white sneakers.

"Yeah, but you haven't changed much yourself Misty."

The red-haired young woman raised a brow. Haven't changed much?Giving herself a quick look, what she did had on for the day was a yellow cropped shirt, some jean shorts and red sneakers – Her signature look ever since she was ten. Feeling her vein throb at Ash's quite insensitive comment, she let out sigh.

"Anyways, where's Pikachu?" she attempted to say so nicely.

"Oh, he's reserving our seats. Come on Misty! Join us."

She smiled. "I'd love that."

After claiming their drinks and the slice of cake, Ash and Misty headed over to their seats by the front, next to the counter. Upon seeing Misty come closer, Pikachu jumped towards her with heartfelt glee. It has been so long – too long, in fact – and Ash's little yellow buddy could not have been happier seeing her face.

"Pika! Pika-pi!" cooed Pikachu as he nuzzled his soft cheeks against Misty's face. Sparks flying from it.

"Oh! Pikachu, how I missed you so!"

"It's been what? Four? Five years?" Ash spoke as he took his seat from across his two dearest friends. Taking a sip of coffee, he rested his elbows against the wooden table.

Misty sat down as well. "It's been ages, Ash. I haven't heard from you since you last visited Unova. How have you been?"

"Well, I'm keeping myself busy working on my application towards becoming one of Kanto's Elite Four."

Misty beamed at this, jade eyes sparkling as if they were the actual precious stones. "Really?! That's amazing Ash! I guess you'll be replacing Drake since he's retired and all. But still, I'm so happy for you! I'm supporting you all the way!" Her warm remarks made Ash feel as if she had never even left – as if they have never parted ways to pursue separate destinies. Having Misty around made him feel so, relaxed yet revitalized. It was as if he could be his quirky, childish and moronic self again.

"Yeah, but that's for the League to decide. Anyways, how have you been?" he asked, gently blowing to cool off his hot drink. "How's life at the Cerulean City Gym?"

"It's… exhausting," she admitted, placing a stray hair behind her ear.

Looking out the window, Misty saw a group of youngsters play about with their Pokémon at the nearby park. "Come on Mudkip, make a fountain! Make a fountain!" She overheard a little girl happily say as she danced around the small geyser the blue Mud Fish Pokémon made.

"But, engaging with enthusiastic young Trainers each day, battling them, giving them advice… yeah, I guess it's worth it."

"Aww you're turning soft, aren't you Misty?" teased Ash.

Misty raised a brow, giving the Trainer a dim glare. "…and what exactly did you mean by that?"

"Hey, now! No need to get mad. I mean, you used to be that strong-willed and bad-tempered girl who wouldn't think twice of hitting me wherever it hurts the most."

"I still am, Ash. I still fucking am."

Pikachu looked up from his Trainer to the young woman beside him.

"And just because I do have a soft side, doesn't mean I'm still not that fierce and feisty Gyarados. And plus, that's only the case when it comes to… hmm, I don't know, YOU."

Ash slightly raised his hands defensively. "H-Hey! Come on now Misty! You don't really mean that do you? Or am I just really that special to you?"

Misty felt her face warm up. "S-Sp-Special?!"

"Yeah, I mean if I'm the only one you act like this towards to, you know then doesn't that mean–!"

"W-What the…" Misty raised from her seat. "Ash Ketchum! You're special to me?! You left me behind without so much as a word of assurance, you worry me to my death every time I hear your name, hell you do stupid shit that Arceus knows no one but I would actually deal with… Y-You just drive me crazy!"

Ash and Pikachu were lost of words. Even some of the customers and the staff had their attention on the two Trainers.

"Wow, Misty…" whispered Ash. "I'm real surprised. I didn't expect you to miss me this much."

Taken aback with how she had just blurted out and with Ash's reaction, Misty's blush had reddened even more. Her eyes widened as she held her hands up to her mouth. "I-I… I didn't mean to…" Overwhelmed with feelings of embarrassment, confusion and regret for bursting out, Misty quickly got up and took her leave. "I'm so sorry," were all the words she could leave behind.

"Misty! Wait!" Ash swiftly got up from his seat to run after her. However, just as he exited the café doors, she was gone.

"Pika…" Pikachu softly said. He too was confused with what had just happened.


"What the flipping fuck is wrong with you Misty?" The red-haired scolded herself. "The guy you have been missing all these years shows up and what do you do? You go all hell-mode on him!" Misty felt herself grow teary-eyed. "Oh… Oh, w-what is wrong with me?!"

Misty returned to hotel just in time for lunch. Dawn and May seemed initially enthusiastic to hear all about their friend's 'hangout' with Ash, until they saw her gloomy face. Misty had not spoken a word, instead, she hurried towards the bathroom and cried.

"Misty! Please, tell us what's wrong…" pleaded May. "How could we help you out when you're locking yourself in there crying your eyes out?" It's been thirty minutes and knocking on the door has proven to be futile. Instead, May and Dawn spoke to their friend through the tiny keyhole.

"I've made a fool of myself! I-I yelled at him… I don't e-even know why… I embarrassed him in front of all those people. I just, I missed him a lot. I still do…" Another bawl. May worriedly glanced towards their bluenette friend.

"We know. It's hard controlling your feelings Misty," Dawn spoke gently. "But please, come out so we could properly sort this out."

"Yes, please Misty. Open up."

Finally, a click from the door knob was heard, and the weeping young woman stepped out.

Dawn and May gave their friend a warm embrace.

"Hey, come on now…" May comforted. "You were just surprised and overwhelmed, that's all. This was unexpected and maybe you just weren't ready."

"Yeah," added Dawn. "And we're sorry for letting you go off alone. We were wrong to do that."

Misty managed to chuckle through her sobs. "Y-Yeah, you guys are so fucking wrong to leave me with him like that."

"Yeah, we're assholes."

"We're remorseful assholes."

May then let out a huge sigh. "All right then. How's about we all have lunch, then go find our outfits for tomorrow night? Sound good?"

Misty nodded. Finally, some time to free herself from overwhelming stress of repressed emotions.


Stepping out from a hot red convertible, Misty, May, and Dawn walked towards the entrance as if they were in slow motion. All three wore dark shades and looked–as described by a passerby– "fly as hell".

"Welcome to Mauville Mall," greeted the valet parking boy.

As they exited the car, several pairs of eyes hovered towards them.

May gave a light giggle.

Dawn flipped her long navy-blue locks.

Misty winked at the valet boy as she handed him the keys, his mouth left agape.

"Have you seen those people's faces?" Dawn chuckled. "It's as if we were stars or something!"

Misty rolled her eyes and gave her an uninterested look. "Well, you two ARE top coordinators," she pointed. "May Maple here should be real famous for it."

"What?" May obliviously looked back to face her friends upon hearing her name. Her attention was focused on the many dessert stalls. Misty could not help herself but grumble.

"All right!" Dawn spoke up clapping her hands. "Aherm. Let's be clear here. We came here to shop for tomorrow night's quote-and-quote, event. We're on a strict budget too, so don't think that we could just go out there and pick out any outfit you like without a glimpse at the price tag." She then gave her friends a wink. "But hey, we're smart shoppers now, aren't we?"

It was past six o' clock in the evening. The girls have been searching over several garments for over four hours. They have gone from stall to stall, and although they would want to admit that they needed to stop by somewhere and rest their tired feet, the hype of finding the perfect outfit was just too much to bear. More importantly, none of them had even gotten to purchase at least one outfit.

"This is hopeless!" Dawn whined. "Either the dress would be too skimpy, too colorful, too slutty, or too fucking expensive!"

"Yeah," agreed Misty. "And the shoes are either too small, too big, too high, or look too much like what I would wear if I were a street hooker."

May heard her stomach grumble. "…I'm just too hungry and tired."

Out of the blue, Dawn unexpectedly perked up. "Oh! OH! How's this?" she gleefully called over to her friends as she held out a mauve one-shoulder top lined with small diamonds. "This would look amazing with a white bandage skirt!"

"Well, you're the stylist here Dawn," May said as she looked through the racks. "But honestly, that top is just… brilliant!"

"Agreed. And it'll suit you well," added Misty.

Dawn squealed in joy. "Oh, thank Arceus! Let me just try this one on. But I'm pretty sure I'll be taking it!" With that, the blunette rushed off to the fitting room.

"Well, Dawn's got her outfit. What about us?" May worriedly asked Misty. "The mall's closing in less than two hours."

"Don't worry May! I'm pretty sure we'll all find something."

The girls continued looking through the racks of the branded store. And just as they felt they needed to move on to yet another clothing shop, Misty pulled out a lovely maroon off-shoulder bodycon dress. "Hey May," she smiled. "I think you'd like this one."

Seeing the dress her friend showed off to her made May's eyes glimmer in elatedness. "Oh Misty! It's beautiful! Oh, should I try it?"

"Go ahead! Hurry!"

May thanked her friend, grabbed the garment, and rushed off to a fitting room. Just as she had entered the small stall, Dawn exited with a huge grin on her face.

"This is it! It's all too perfect! And the price? It's on sale! Forty-percent-off!"

"Hey, lucky you!" Misty nudged her blue-haired friend by the shoulder. "Told you guys we'd find something."

"Yes, indeed Misty. Anyways, where's May?"

"Fitting her dress."

"She's found one too?! That's so awesome! Okay, we only need to find one for… you." Dawn grinned batting her eyelashes in a teasing manner. "Aren't you excited?"

Misty held on to her arm. "I am… Just getting quite worried myself."

"Oh, none of that crap! We're here to find your perfect outfit and WE ARE GOING TO FIND IT!"

"Wow, chill your tits Dawn."

Dawn raised a brow at her friend's awkward remark. "Eh, what?"

"Oh! I mean–! Shit. I was thinking of both, 'chill out' and 'calm your tits'. It just came out wrong, I guess."

"Uh, yeah… Because there is no way in the world that I'm going have Lopunny use Ice Beam on my chest."

The two girls then gave giggles.

After a while, May then came out from the fitting room. "It's a perfect fit! I'm getting this one! Have you found yours yet, Misty?"

The redhead shook her head. "But if we keep looking, we might just find it."

"Then there's no moment to waste! Let's make haste!" bellowed Dawn as she took out her credit card and paid for her dress. After May had made her purchase as well, the two rushed off across the mall to help Misty find the perfect outfit for tomorrow night.

It was fifteen minutes to eight in the evening. The girls quite anxiously scurried through several shops throughout the mall. Each of them checked different floors to cover more ground, however, as the mall was already closing it seemed as if all hope was lost.

"I'm sorry Miss, but the mall is closing. We regretfully have to ask you to leave soon," a guard told Dawn as she pleaded to head inside one of the stores.

"But we still have five minutes! Come on!"

"I'm really sorry Miss. Please, come back tomorrow."

Dawn narrowed her eyebrows as her eyes flared in infuriation. "All right listen here you little fu-!" May hurriedly cupped her friend's mouth as Misty pulled her back. "We'll come back tomorrow, Sir. Thank you," Misty smiled awkwardly as she struggled her hold on Dawn.

The ladies left the mall in silence. Goodness what a day. And I thought I was bad at handling my emotions, May thought to herself.

"Misty, I'm… I'm sorry," Dawn softly spoke, breaking the silence. "I just really wanted to make sure you got your perfect outfit."

Misty smiled. "It's fine Dawn. Thank you. I could just wake up earlier tomorrow and check myself."

"We'll go with you Misty," May said.

The redhead shook her head. "You both need the time to prepare. And no worries, I'll be fine."

Dawn stopped in her tracks. "Misty, listen here. We promised to get you that awesome perfect outfit, and we ARE getting it. All right? We're going with you whether you like it or not." May forcefully nodded in agreement.

Misty rolled her eyes but could not help herself but smile widely. "Oh, fine. Thanks, you guys. Really." She then gave each of them a quick hug. "Seriously though, Dawn. I would never really know what's going on in that mind of yours."

Unbeknownst to the three Pokémon Trainers, a mysterious figure from the distance watched them as they headed back to the hotel.