"Misty!"
Ash shouted to her as she walked into the residence section of the gym but the redhead wasn't responsive initially. Seemingly ignoring her childhood friend, Misty went straight to the fridge and pulled out a beer and opened it. Taking a quick drink, she set it down on the side and shook her head as Ash stood up from his seated position and slowly approached her.
Misty: "Not now Ash... I need to decompress for a few minutes..."
Unfortunately for the redhead, Ash's need to just get right to the point despite being told to back off was still present in his grown up state. Ignoring Misty's request which had a very subtle hint of directness and the threat of violence in it's delivery, Ash simply walked towards her, making sure to at least stay just out of arms reach from her before he 'poked the Urisang'.
Ash: "I could tell something was up when I got here yesterday... Why didn't you just tell me that your gym leadership privileges were under threat? You could have called me any time y'know, I'd have got right back here to help"
Misty didn't look up at Ash. She knew what he was saying was right and he had a point, but the redhead was still rather stubborn and very protective of her pride. Admitting she needed help from Ash wasn't intended to be a bad thing, he always had a way of figuring things out, but she just felt that this once she could get through it herself. Holding back the tears, Misty simply spoke in that hostile tone of voice once more.
Misty: "Ash... Just drop it for now, ok?"
Ignorant as always, Ash continued to press the issue. He knew this could end very badly for him, but at the same time, he couldn't bear to see his childhood friend in a dire situation. Ignoring the very openly hostile body language from Misty as she clenched her free hand into a fist and gripped the bottle of beer in her hand even tighter, Ash continued to talk at Misty whilst Pikachu sighed and covered it's eyes. It knew what was coming next and as much as the little electric rat loved Ash and Misty, it hated them fighting.
Ash: "No, this is too big to just drop Misty... We need to come up with a plan... We nee..."
CRACK!
Misty gave no final warning as she sprung forwards and once again caught Ash in the jaw with a huge left hook. Stumbling backwards and falling over the back of the couch and into the middle of the floor, Ash groaned as he held his jaw whilst Misty stomped over to him. Standing there above him, leaning over him and in a full blown rage which would put a Gyarados to shame, the redhead unleashed everything which was flying around her head at that point in time on him.
Misty: "You are UNBELIEVABLE ASH KETCHUM! You go off for six years, rarely stay in touch, doing what YOU want to do whilst the rest of us are stuck here doing things which require us to be grown up and HAVE responsibilities... But its ok for you because YOU'RE ASH KETCHUM, the ever wandering nomadic Pokémon Master hopeful, STILL living out a Childish dream!"
Misty paused as she took a deep breath before continuing to unload.
Misty: "You just can't leave things alone CAN YOU? You see a problem and instead of just standing back, holding your hands up and thinking 'This isn't my place to get involved, I'll wait and see if help is needed', you just jump right in regardless of what people want... You just have to be the big hero... Mister Ash Ketchum, Superstar... The ten year old in a twenty year old's body! The boy who might look grown up but still can't get out of bed at a reasonable time and is still obsessed with all things Pokémon and problem solving than just being an adult for once!"
Ash just stared back at Misty. His sense of self preservation finally kicked in and he knew trying to defend himself now would be pointless. Instead he held back what he really wanted to say just so he could let his friend get it all out.
Misty: "I was going to tell you about the league breathing down my neck, but not a day after we first see each other again after the best part of a decade has gone by! I mean didn't you ever think I may have just wanted to enjoy some time with an old friend and not have to worry about things which have been constantly dragging me down for the past year? YOU JUST CAN'T LEAVE ANYTHING CAN YOU? It's bad enough Brock is trying to get involved every step of the way, but at least he knows he can only act within his limits... YOU on the other hand... URGH!"
Turning her back, Misty tried to hide the fact she'd started to cry with anger but Ash could tell. Slowly pulling himself up to his feet, Ash glanced over at Pikachu who shook his head.
Ash: "C'mon Pikachu... Let's get our things together and go... Misty needs time alone and I think we outstayed our welcome..."
Pikachu nodded. Hopping down from the arm of the chair it had been perched on, the rat pokemon looked at Misty and resisted the urge to go to her and to try and comfort her and instead ran out the room, headed for the room which Ash was staying in, presumably to help Ash sort his stuff out and to give Ash some privacy with Misty if he felt brave enough.
Ash: "You know how to get hold of me... Just call me if you get the chance Misty... Please... I want to help..."
Misty didn't respond which prompted Ash to take this as his cue to leave. Walking away to the room he had been staying in, he gathered the rest of his belongings which Pikachu couldn't manage to sort and the pair of them left, leaving Misty on her own. Hearing the door slam, Misty leaned against the wall and shook her head before finally sobbing out loud. Sinking down to the floor, she rocked her head backwards, hitting it against the wall and closed her eyes as she raised the bottle to her mouth. Draining the bottle in one long go, she wiped the back of her mouth and just let it roll across the floor. As the sound of rolling glass finally turned into a loud clink as the bottle hit the leg of the table, Misty opened her eyes and sighed.
"Well done Misty... The one person who was prepared to put up with your crap you just drove away... Happy Now?"
=...=...=
Ash and Pikachu walked in silence towards Route 24. Their plan was simple - give Misty some space and camp out on Route 25 or near the cove like they did back in the day. Keeping his head down and cap pulled forward to keep the sun out of his eyes and to stop any trainers from noticing who he was, Ash reached the outskirts of Cerulean and looked ahead towards Nugget Bridge. Reluctant to face the late afternoon rush of battle hungry trainers, Ash simply reached for his Poké balls and selected one. Throwing it out in front of him, the white flash of energy manifested itself as Charizard, one of Ash's most faithful companions. The dragon snorted its nose, letting two small puffs of smoke flare out from its nostrils before it saw Ash and Pikachu looking deflated. Sensing something was up, the dragon simply turned its back to Ash and leaned forwards, letting its trainer climb on.
Ash: "Charizard, fly us to Cerulean Cove... We'll camp out in the woods like old times!"
Charizard grunted as a sign of acknowledgement before it let out a huge roar. Flapping its wings and pushing up with its powerful legs, the dragon went airborne and soared through the sky. Clinging on tightly, Pikachu buried its face in Ash's chest to avoid losing its balance whilst Charizard simply soared through the sky, occasionally making loud snort-like noises in the direction of the flocks of Wingulls, Swablu's and Pidgey's in the surrounding area.
Ash: "Easy boy... You can terrorize them later... Right now we gotta get to the cove in one piece"
A reluctant grunt from the dragon was followed by it spotting a clearing close to the waterfront. Swooping down, the dragon made a smooth landing and shook Ash off its back. Stomping around and roaring, Charizard was letting any other Pokémon in the area know this was his turf for the forseable future and the sound of flapping wings followed by a flock of Spearows vacating the nearby area drew a smile from the dragon. Letting off a flamethrower as a mark of triumph, it lay down on the floor and looked at Ash who had started to prepare their camp. Reaching for his other Poké balls, he released them all one by one.
"Muuuk!"
"Ferrral!"
"Snooor"
"Glalie!"
The Pokémon were all visibly excited to be out of their Pokéballs and all started to cause chaos, charging about the place, well except for Snorlax which simply stood there wondering what trees near them had anything edible on them. As they enjoyed their 'run out', Ash started to gather wood for a fire. Picking up enough sticks and stones until he had a rudimentary base for a fire built, he held out one of the sticks to Charizard's tail, igniting it before placing it down in the pile. After some blowing into it to try and encourage the flames to grow, the sound of crackling and the orange glow signalled the fire was ready. Returning to his bag, Ash pulled out a stand, a pot and what looked like a tin of soup and went to work on preparing his evening meal.
"Well, guess it's dinner for one tonight..."
He felt bad about pushing Misty to talk about her impending problems with the League, but he knew that if he didn't push her the way he did, she'd have just ignored it or made herself ten times worse when no one was looking. Stirring his soup occasionally and watching the flames, Ash's mind started to wander but he was brought back by the sudden realisation that Brock was headed over to Misty's gym. Shooting up to his feet and almost falling over Muk which had took up rest behind him, Ash scrambled for his PokéGear, hoping to send a warning message to Brock, suggesting he avoid Misty until tomorrow but as he grabbed the handset, it was too late. He looked at the screen and sighed - Brock had just got to the gym and messaged him to say he was there.
"Oh man... Misty is gonna Kill him!"
Hitting call, Ash crossed his fingers and hoped Brock hadn't suffered Misty's wrath. Repeatedly saying 'pick up!' to the phone, hoping Brock would get the message, Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he finally heard his friend's voice. Ash smiled for a moment until he realised it was Brock's answer phone message. Sighing he left his friend a message and hoped the gym leader would get it before he fell afoul of the redhead's temper and vile mood.
"Brock... I'm not at the gym... I kinda upset Misty and well.. Long story short, I left to give her some space... She's really mad though... You might wanna avoid her... I'm camped out near the cove, come by and we'll go see her tomorrow"
Hanging up, Ash sighed and went back to his place by the fire. With his soup now thoroughly warmed through, he tucked into it before stowing his belongings to one side and leaned back against Muk who was fast asleep behind him. The one advantage of Muk was that he was like a memory foam pillow and as Ash leaned into his purple and slimy friend, he sank right into a comfortable position, allowing him to stretch out and let his mind wander. watching the flames from the fire dance across the wood they were feeding off, Ash couldn't help but think about Misty and what was going to happen to her... Apart from journeying with him, the only thing she had ever known was being a Gym Leader and he wondered if she'd be able to cope without the gym should the league revoke her licence.
One by one, his Pokémon started to return after enjoying their run out and Ash let them back in their Poké balls before stretching out in front of the fire. Jumping up onto his hip, Pikachu simply uttered its name with a sorrowful inflection and Ash scratched it behind the ear.
Ash: "I know buddy, I'm worried about Misty too... But she needs to get this outta her system now If we're gonna give her a hand... If she even wants us to give her a hand that is..."
Pikachu: "Pi! Pikka PI!"
Ash: "I know buddy, I'm not gonna stand by and let the gym get taken away from her!"
He was tired, though he got a good night's rest the night before, the events of the day had worn him out and as he started to see the last rays of the sun's light dip below the treeline, he took off his jacket and folded it up before placing it against a rock. Leaning back in order to rest his head, Ash took a deep breath before he closed his eyes. In the morning, he was going to go back to the gym and try and talk to Mysty. Just as he started to drift off however, his PokéGear rang.
"Ugh!"
Reaching out, he grabbed hold of it and looked at the screen for a moment before answering.
"Hello..?"
Upon hearing the voice, Ash smiled...