[4]
~~~~~~~~~Lost at Sea~~~~~~~~~
Walking into the afternoon sun they started on their way to the gym only to be stopped by the sight of a carnival looking ride that spun in a circle while people and pokemon swung on the swings that were attached. As soon as they saw it Togepi and Pikachu immediately ran in the rides direction.
"Togepi! Come back here!" Misty called out and took off after the pair.
"Yeah, come on Pikachu" Ash said running after Misty.
Brock followed with a jog shaking his head.
Misty quickly caught up to the egg and picked her up, "You shouldn't run off like that" she told Togepi. But all the small pokemon did was start crying and waving her arms.
"Ok Ok! You can have one ride, but then we have to go to the gym" she sighed and bought Togepi a ticket.
Ash shrugged his shoulders and got Pikachu a ticket to, and after seeing a couple girls in shorts walk on Brock decided he would ride with the two pokemon. The ride started up and Ash and Misty watched as their pokemon laughed and waved at them. However they couldn't bear watching Brock leer at the girls in front of him.
"We really need to find him some help" Misty said sweat dropping.
Ash could only nod while staring down at the ground.
All of a sudden an enormous Fearrow dive-bombed out of the sky and swooped in on the ride to grab Togepi and fly off.
"Togepi!" Misty cried out trying to run after the bird, as Ash stood not sure what to do.
"Go after it Ash, I'll meet you guys after this thing stops!" Brock yelled to Ash looking helpless in the small swing.
Ash tore off after Misty and the giant poultry trying to come up with a plan. He finally caught up to Misty to find her bent over with her hands on her knees trying to get her breath back.
"I lost…them, the last thing…I saw was the bird land somewhere in the middle of…that!" she said breathlessly and pointed to the middle of town which was packed with people and hundreds of shops with large rooftops.
Ash took his hat off and scratched his head, how were they ever going to find Togepi in that?
"Ash, we have to get her back!" Misty said panicked tears welling up in her eyes.
"Don't worry, we will" he said putting a hand on her shoulder, though inside he wasn't so sure of himself.
Brock came into view not even out of breath or sweating.
'Wow I guess chasing girls does come with its advantages' Ash thought to himself a little creeped out.
They started searching, pushing their way through the immense and engulfing crowds calling out for the small egg pokemon. They asked anyone that would listen if they had seen a Togepi. All the while Misty grew more and more panicked, all the memories she had came back as she struggled through the masses. The three continued to search everywhere until the sun began to fall from the sky and the town became even more crowded with evening shoppers. They met up in the only unpopulated area left, Misty was sobbing into Ash's shoulder when Brock trudged over empty handed.
"We'll find her don't worry Mist" Brock said softly, "It's not dark yet, we still have more time to look".
Then through her sobs Misty thought she heard a trill that she knew quite well. She looked in the direction so quickly she nearly gave herself whiplash, on one of the rooftops she saw Togepi walking along the edge near the curtain awning.
"Guys! Look!" she cried pointing out Togepi.
"Come on let's go quick" Ash replied and they all ran to the shop not caring about bumping into people.
The three found the right one and luckily enough the back of the store with a ladder faced their direction, they climbed the ladder as fast as they could and ran across the roof to Togepi. Misty's heart was pounding; she had to make it in time.
Though before Misty could get to her the pokemon tripped and fell onto the cloth awning. Misty ran faster and got to the edge just to see Togepi walking along the awning now, but heading to the edge and the street.
"Togepi stop!" She yelled to the pokemon but Togepi wasn't paying attention and continued heading toward the fall.
Carefully Misty crawled onto the cloth hoping it would hold her long enough to get Togepi. Her outstretched arm grew closer and closer to the egg and just when she was about to grab Togepi the awning began to tear slightly but the force caused the small egg to trip and fall over the edge.
"TOGEPI!" Misty screamed as the awning tore completely and she began to fall fast.
The only thing Misty heard was the wind, even though it was only a three story drop it felt like forever, the rush of air preventing her from screaming. Then she came to a sudden stop and felt her body jerk slightly from the impact, though it wasn't at all how a fall from that high should have been. Though what she landed on felt tense it was also soft and warm, it was extremely confusing. When her mind caught up to her Misty looked to see a Raichu holding a happy and trilling Togepi.
'A Raichu? That means…' her mind slowly figured. Misty then realized she was being held bridal style by none other than Matthias Volt. She turned very slowly to her right to come face to face and within inches of his dark chocolate eyes. She could see every small speckle of light brown amongst the sea of dark in them. His luscious scent cradling her as his arms did the same. The warm sensation of his fingers wrapped across her leg made her blush deeply. Misty was breathless now, but it wasn't because of the fall. She could feel his tensed muscles press against her; her face was so close, so very close to his. Her heart beat in her ears, drowning out the sounds around them, isolating the two further in Misty's mind.
'If I leant in just a little it might look like an accident, just a tiny bit' her instincts pushed.
Her breathing was ragged and she couldn't tear her eyes off his perfect lips. She was so close she could feel the heat radiating from them, her body and mind screamed for it. For that second all Misty yearned for was his kiss, to feel the warmth of his lips against hers.
"Misty? Are you alright?" Matthias spoke softly but his tone was strained with worry. His words snapped her out of her daze.
"Uh huh" she said blinking her eyes and shaking her head trying to clear it.
"Are you certain?" he pushed leaning in a bit closer.
A million butterflies flurried inside her, Misty had to use every fiber of her strength left to stop herself from just leaning in that one tiny inch and pushing her lips to his.
"Yeah…yeah" she replied nodding.
Matthias studied her eyes for another moment and then gently set her down. Misty took one step before her legs gave way and she found herself against Matthias and in his arms once more. Her head resting against his chest she could feel his heart, which was beating a tiny bit quickly, most likely as a result of her basically falling on him out of nowhere.
"That is what I was afraid of" he said a small smile in his voice.
Suddenly a heavy set man was yelling loudly at her, almost screaming and waving his hands about. Misty stepped out of Matthias' embrace and tried to clear the fog away from her mind she attempted to explain to the man who must have been the owner. She was only able to get out a few words before Matthias stepped in front of her with a strange puzzled look on his face.
"Excuse me, but what in the name of everything that exists do you think you are doing" he exclaimed softly but his words burned with wrath. "Are you so indescribably inept that you cannot see that this young lady has not only lost her pokemon, but was also almost seriously injured?" he continued, though his volume remained low his words adopted a cold and calculated fury that was quite unnerving almost as if he was about to tear the mans heart out, gently though.
"I believe that is much more important than some shoddy decorate, I will pay for any damage but as of this moment you had better get out of my sight" he finished his eyes blazing.
The store owner hurriedly ran back into the shop. Matthias exhaled and when he turned back to Misty his eyes were warm and comforting.
'Note to self, don't get on his bad side' Brock thought to himself.
"I apologize for his actions, he clearly wasn't thinking correctly" Matthias said.
"It's…fine" Misty smiled "Thank you, so much"
"Well I did not do very much, but I do try to be a knight in shining armor" he replied.
"But that's impossible for you" Misty said "Black armor wouldn't really shine".
Matthias grinned as he laughed, "Right you are, seeing as the gym is already closed for the night how about I take you all for coffee or shakes or what have you?" he invited.
They all looked at each other and shrugged, "Sure, we don't have any plans" Brock answered.
"Excellent, you especially could use some sugar" Matthias said noting how exhausted Misty appeared to be.
They began their way to the coffee shop, Misty holding Togepi tightly to her. Matthias walked close to Misty in case she was more tired than she thought, ready to catch her once more.
Seeing the two walking in front of him Ash felt something strange slither its way through his insides, but couldn't describe it to save his life. Matthias was walking almost as Misty's shadow, not touching, but damn near gliding behind her. It was apparent that he didn't have to be touching her for Ash to feel the residual wake of their energy crackle against his skin. His stomach churned in a rejecting protest to the stinging sparks.
"You don't have to guard me you know" Misty said looking up at Matthias, testing him out.
"Well I am certain it is nothing your friends wouldn't do if I weren't here" he responded with a smile and turned to Brock and Ash.
Hearing him say that seemed to quell the strange creature inside Ash, though by no means did it rid him of the beast completely. They all sat at a table outside a quaint cafe and looked at the menu. So many questions burned inside Misty that she wanted just to blurt them all out. She wanted to know all about this mysterious man that sat beside her. They ordered and their drinks came fairly quickly, one advantage of being in the company of the city's gym leader.
"So is one of the Elite Four really thinking about leaving?" Brock inquired over his tea.
Matthias finished a sip of his coffee, "Actually, you did not hear this from me but the Elite have been debating on whether Lance is fit to lead them, some have argued he wasn't presenting enough of a challenge".
"Yeah, I know what you mean" Ash said trying to get the milkshake into his straw.
"Well we all know battling Prima is always a challenge" Misty gushed trying to balance her coffee in one hand and Togepi in the other.
Matthias' brow furled for a moment, "Oh Lorelei, yes she is very skilled. I do often forget she goes by Prima nowadays".
"How well do you know Pri… Lorelei?" Misty asked excitedly.
Matthias smirked with nostalgia, "We grew up together, she lived right next door to us actually". He leaned back in his chair and sighed thinking back, "She always used to give me such a difficult time, always pushing me to do better. I guess she knew more than I, given what path we both chose and how well it is going".
For as skilled and dedicated as he was Misty could help but notice how humble Matthias was.
"I would die if Gary turned out to be like Prima and got ahead of me" Ash replied still battling with his shake.
"Well there's no cause for concern, there must two males and two females and Koga is not going anywhere for awhile. He's as stubborn as an ox." Matthias assured him.
Misty sipped on her coffee and took in the sight of Matthias, thinking of how weird it would be knowing him before he became one of the Elite Four, she wondered if he would remember them when he was at the top. As Misty found herself lost in thought she felt a light brush against her leg but ignored it. In fact she hardly noticed the slight contact till something warm and moist touched the side of her leg. Misty jumped and looked down to see Matthias' Raichu staring up at her, head cocked to the side slightly as if studying her. She let out the breath she'd been holding and petted the top of Raichu's head to which the pokemon leaned into her hand and gave her palm a quick lick.
"You're a sneaky little one aren't you?" Misty said stroking the electric mouse's ears gently.
Matthias had an amused smile on his face, "It seems Togepi's not the only one who has taken to a stranger, I have never seen him act like this to someone he just met".
"Aw! I'm so flattered" Misty said grinning and ruffling Raichu's ears. She felt so cheerful and warm inside, and Misty wasn't sure if it was the static from Raichu, or the feeling of being accepted. Though being around Pikachu so long she had gotten used to the static.
"So how did Raichu join your group?" Misty asked still absentmindedly rubbing the orange Pokémon's ears. For the first time Misty saw Matthias look unsettled as he and Raichu exchanged a glance. His jaw clenched and his nostrils flared just a tiny bit. Raichu froze under her touch and fear rose up in her throat, did she say something wrong? Would Matthias be angry with her? Her palms broke out in a clammy sweat, and she frantically scrambled for something to say.
"I mean, did you raise him from a Pikachu, was he your first pokemon or something?" she quickly stammered hoping to undo whatever she had done.
The tension in Matthias drained away and his shoulders shrugged back to normal, Raichu relaxed back into her hand as well.
"Ah, of course. Yes I did raise him from a Pikachu, though he was not my first pokemon. It's a rather interesting story if you all would care to hear it" Matthias stated.
Misty relaxed, letting out a breath she wasn't even aware she was holding but couldn't help but wonder what had made the gym leader and his Raichu so unnerved.
"We have plenty of time" Brock said encouragingly.
"Yeah go on!" Ash exclaimed obviously interested.
"Alright then" Matthias said ordering another coffee and whatever else the group wanted.
Matthias told them about his first day as a pokemon trainer, how he had chosen Charmander, being from the Kanto region, even though his true passion was for electric pokemon. So he decided to set out to the Viridian Forest and find a Pikachu to catch.
"I was wandering around the forest for hours and it was beginning to get dark before I finally found a Pikachu!" Matthias explained.
He was just about to pull out Charmander to battle the mouse when a huge truck crashed through the trees. Giovanni, a notorious criminal at the time, stepped out of the truck with a net gun and shot one of the nets at the Pikachu. Matthias could remember how quickly the Pikachu moved to avoid the net, it was faster than he'd ever seen a Pikachu move. The small yellow pokemon tore off into the forest with Giovanni and his men giving chase. When Matthias tried to block their way the brute just uppercut Matthias in the stomach and shoved him out of the way.
"When I finally got my breath back I knew I had to help that Pikachu".
Matthias got to his feet and started sprinting in the direction that everyone had run off in. He could hear his pulse in his ears and his lungs burnt from exertion. He remembered how badly the trees stung as they whipped against him, but he didn't care, all he could think of was saving that pokemon. Matthias could hear Pikachu crying out for help as it ran as fast as its legs could carry it, he recalled how it hurt just hearing it, the tears it brought to his eyes with every frantic yelp the Pikachu screamed, but it also helped him fight through his own pain. Finally the group came into view and he could see the fear on Pikachu's face as it ran, looking back at the men trying to hunt it down.
"To this day, I will never forget the terror on his face" Matthias said grimacing, his jaw tight as he fought away the emotions.
Matthias was closing in quickly when Pikachu tripped over a fallen branch and hurt his leg. Matthias saw the small pokemon tumble over and over again through the harsh underbrush crying out in agony. The tears that had formed in his eyes finally fell at the sound of it, and he ran even faster than he thought he could ever run. Giovanni had picked up the Pikachu and was about to inject something into it. Matthias could see the needle going toward the mouse in slow motion as he got closer and closer, soon the needle was just above the skin. Matthias grabbed the pokemon from Giovanni just as the needle was about to penetrate the skin and ran towards a clearing ahead of them.
"I could see the clearing getting nearer, and I remember thinking if I could just get there we would be ok" Matthias explained, his eyes troubled with the memory.
He got the clearing with Pikachu in his arms only to find it was the shoreline for an enormous pond. Matthias skidded to a stop, almost falling over the edge into the dark and murky water. He turned in dread to see that Giovanni and his men had slowed and knew that he was trapped. Standing on the edge his heart was beating so hard he thought it might explode. His arms and legs were shaking and he tried to formulate a plan but nothing came. He looked to the small pokemon in his arms silently asking for permission for what he knew he had to do.
"Pikachu knew exactly what I was thinking, and gave a small nod right away. It was such a connection"
Matthias took at deep breath and turned to leap into the dark water, as he fell through the air he felt the grip of a net enclose around him. The water swallowed him up, and the net began to drag him down. It was so dark he couldn't see a thing; he tried to scream only to choke on the rush of water. What Matthias didn't know was that Pikachu was desperately gnawing at the net and making progress. The net broke free of them and Matthias swam frantically for the surface.
"It was then I saw a dark shadow course through the water next to me, it turned out that Giovanni had sent his Gyarados in to finish me and take Pikachu".
Matthias felt the tug on his leg and was pulled down once more, he beat against the Gyarados as hard as a ten year old could but to no avail. The darkness swallowed him, and everything faded to black.
"Oh my god! What happened! How did you survive?" Misty gasped.
"I found out later that Pikachu had learned thunderbolt and sent all of his power into the water. It was enough to dismay the Gyarados and to shock me conscious." Matthias answered, pride in his voice for his pokemon.
When Matthias got to the surface he found he was in the middle of the large pond and, with Pikachu's shock, he had energy enough to swim them both the rest of the way to the other side.
"We ran to Officer Jenny and she arrested most of the men but Giovanni had gotten away. Pikachu and I had formed such a bond that he decided he wanted to join me." Matthias finished setting his coffee down on the table and leaning back. Raichu had come over to him and he was petting his pokemon reassuringly. Their bond could be seen plain as day.
"Wow, Giovanni's been after my Pikachu for years" Ash said.
"No doubt he has been trying to find a replacement for mine" Matthias conjectured.
They all just sat there staring at Matthias; taking in the amazing story he had just let them in on.
As they had been listening to the story the sky had bled into deep crimson and orange streaks that cast them all in a shade that can only be described as sunset.
"Well, I do hope you have enjoyed our story" Matthias said giving a smirk to his electric companion. "I wouldn't want to keep you all out after dark" he added slowly getting to his feet.
"Thank you so much for telling us" Misty said scooping up Togepi into her arms and looking into Matthias' deep chocolate eyes.
"Well it is such a pleasure to have such interested and passionate listeners" he replied his smile reaching all the way to his eyes.
Misty quickly became interested in her empty coffee cup to hide the blush that blossomed across her face.
"Well how could we not be interested with a story like that?" Brock mused cleaning up after Ash.
Matthias laughed, and shrugged as he signed the check, "I am glad I could entertain you all so".
Ash and Brock stood, while Misty stayed sitting getting a bit of whip cream off Togepi's face.
They both said their goodbyes for the night, and Misty looked up in time to see Matthias sitting back in his seat next to her. "And you, make sure you take care of yourself till the morning" he said laying his hand on top of hers. She simply nodded in response for lack of breath. Raichu came over to Misty and made sure she petted him goodbye. With that Matthias and Raichu waved and made their way back to the gym.
"Well you guys ready?" Brock asked as Misty and Ash both nodded.
On the walk back to the hotel Misty still wondered what had made the two so uncomfortable, but couldn't think of what it could have possibly been. It was especially hard to think with the feeling of Matthias' hand still lingering on hers. They made their way back to their rooms and said goodnight. Misty changed and collapsed into bed never letting Togepi out of her embrace, sleep came almost instantaneously.