Well I'm back again ladies and gentleman for another update. And what oh what should I rant about this time? Hmm...I guess nothing. Halloween is around the corner and I have to say, although Christmas is my favorite holiday to spend with family, in general Halloween is my favorite. I never knew why, since trick-or-treating for me is utterly pointless, (I don't like chocolate...waiting for the hate mail on that one). But I always liked dressing up in costumes for Halloween, and let me say that I am VERY original. I was Scream, then Jason, then the Grim Reaper, then a axe skeleton demon...and then Jack Sparrow. I know, original right! How about you all tell me your costumes for this year, leave it in a review. I plan on being a mobster this year for no reason since I have no plans. Anyway, onto my newest chapter!
-EVAN AAML
Hours later the sun began to rise in the horizon. A few patches of the light from the sun began to creep through the branches and openings on the hills. One of these patches just so happened to peak through the lone window of the attic. This ray of light made it's way into the room and onto the face of a sleeping Jessie. Moments later, Jessie's face cringed and she covered her eyes. Sensing that the light would not go away, she awoken. Jessie sat up from the couch and looked out the window, squinting at the little bit of light still shining through. She looked at her wrist watch and could see that it was about six thirty. Jessie rubbed her eyes and then stretched, ready to get out of bed. As she turned her body and placed her feet on the cold wooden floor, she looked at the sleeping masses of Misty and May. Not realizing that May was missing nor even caring, Jessie made her way to the spiral staircase and walked down it. As soon as she made it to the bottom of the steps, she walked straight ahead, out of the entertainment room. Jessie then made her way to the bathroom, just down the hall from the second doorway to the entertainment room. The bathroom was a decent size, mostly white but with a style that matched most of the house. She decided that it was too early to take a shower just yet and so only took care of the basic morning routines. After finishing, she left the bathroom and made her way down the hall. However, as she walked, she noticed something on the ground in front of the first entrance to the entertainment room. She bent down and picked up the shovel to the fireplace. Wondering how it got there and who put it there, Jessie placed the shovel back to its original location and looked upstairs to investigate. Not finding anything out of the ordinary in the hall, bathroom, or entertainment room, she decided to check out the master bedroom. Immediately when she walked in, she spotted May and Drew in the bed. May laid on her side and clung to Drew, who lied on his back. Both of them were asleep. Jessie didn't make a noise or even respond to the scene before her. She just looked at the two sleeping teens with a blank stare, as if she was still getting used to being awake. Jessie then slowly walked out of the bedroom, down the stairs, and into the Kitchen where she saw the familiar site of Brock making coffee. He had already poured himself a mug and had a few more mugs out for those who wanted coffee. He turned to see Jessie and smiled.
"Well, good morning! I see you decided to wake up early again!", Brock said and he grabbed one of the mugs and poured some coffee into it. When he finished he handed it to Jessie. "So what's up?". Jessie shrugged.
"Eh, not much, just got up, it's our last full day here, probably gonna spend it outside in this beautiful weather, and oh, May and Drew had sex last night", Jessie said bluntly as she took a sip of coffee. Brock immediately spewed out the coffee he had in his mouth and looked at Jessie in shock.
"WHAT!", Brock yelled. Although this came to a shock for him, he still kept his voice down low enough so as to not wake the others. "They did that! Are you sure!".
"Well, when I found them, May was", Jessie stated before being interrupted by Brock.
"Nyah, no, no, don't tell me!", Brock yelled. Just then, a noise could be heard from the laundry room and before long, Ash walked into the Kitchen. He was still tired and could barely keep his head up. Brock tried to keep his cool, something that he did a bad job at doing. But Ash was too tired to notice. Brock handed him some coffee. "Uh, hey Ash, what's up?". Ash yawned.
"Well, I didn't get alot of sleep last night, other than that not much...you?", Ash asked. Brock wasn't sure how Ash would react to the news that he himself was barely able to comprehend. But feeling that not telling him and instead having him find out on his own would possibly create more havoc; Brock decided to break the news.
"Uh, well...May and Drew sort of, uhm...had sex?", Brock said, preparing for the worst. Ash took a sip of coffee and shrugged.
"Hmm, that's nice", Ash said. He then walked past Jessie and into the other room. Brock and Jessie looked at each other.
"Three, two, one", they counted in unison. Immediately following the one, the sound of something being spat out of one's mouth could be heard.
"MAY AND DREW DID WHAT!" Ash yelled, not taking into regard silence. Jessie and Brock immediately broke into laughter. After a bit of a talk between the three, they all decided that it was best not to tell the others. They felt that May and Drew shouldn't have that much attention on them for their last day. After an hour or so, everyone was up and were prepared for the day ahead. Breakfast was quickly served and soon people began to eat. Although the breakfast was just as big as the day before, it seemed to go by quicker. Afterwards as people finished, there was discussion over what to do. At the table in the dining room sat Ash, Tracy, Brock, Misty, Dawn, and Gary. As they ate what remained of their breakfast they thought about what to do for the day.
"So how about fishing?", Gary suggested. Ash shook his head.
"Did it, besides, do you honestly think the majority of us here have that attention span needed?", Ash asked. Gary thought for a moment and then nodded in agreement.
"We could try out the kayaks or paddle boat!", Dawn said. This time Brock shook his head.
"There's only three one person kayaks, and the paddle boat apparently needs repairs", Brock said. Dawn sighed in disappointment.
"We could go hunting! I bet we could find more Stantler!", Tracy joked looking directly at Misty. As he grinned in amusement, Misty slapped him. "OW!...well I'll take that as a definite possibility". Misty slapped him again. "OW! OK!...it's a maybe". A third slap. "OW! ALRIGHT WE WON'T! JEEZ!", he yelled. Just then, Misty got an idea.
"Hey, how about a hike?", Misty suggested. There was a moment's pause to let the idea sink in, then everyone started nodding.
"Yeah, that sounds do-able!", Dawn said.
"Alright by me", Brock said.
"Well its better than my idea", Tracy commented rubbing his arm from the repetitive slaps.
"So then, we're all going hiking!", Ash finalized. There were serious and sarcastic cheers all around. And so, with the decision made, everyone prepared for the hike. Max being the adventurous type to begin with, had been prepared for a hike since their arrival to the lake house. As such, he spent his time picking a route for them to go on. He had made a decision, but wanted the opinions of others to be on the safe side. Not knowing where the majority of the people were, he first made his way to the basement. So he went into the laundry room, lifted the latch door, and then walked down the stairs. When he reached the bottom he looked around and saw Ash and Pikachu on the ground, their backs to him. As he approached them, Pikachu's ears perked and he turned to see the boy. Quickly, he muttered in his own language to Ash, who in turn looked over his shoulder and saw Max. In a hurry, he grabbed multiple items hidden from Max's view and hid them in a small red pouch. As soon as he did, he slid the pouch into his front hoodie pocket. Ash then stood up and looked at the boy.
"Uh, hey Max! hat are you up to?", Ash asked nervously. Max looked at him confused.
"Uhm...not much. I just wanted your opinion on something", Max answered.
"Great! What is it you want my opinion on?", Ash asked, still fidgeting with the pouch in his pocket. Max noticed this and became suspicious.
"Ash, what is that you're hiding?", Max asked.
"What! Hiding! Nonsense you're seeing things!", Ash stated. Pikachu sweatdropped and shook his head in disappointment towards Ash.
"Then what's in your pocket?", Max asked. Ash became jumpy and his heart raced. He quickly ran to Max and began pushing him towards the stairs.
"Don't you have somewhere to be right now?", Ash said in a more demanding way than a question. Max looked back at him with the map he had.
"But I still need your opinion on the route we should take on our hike!", Max said trying to resist Ash's pushing to no avail.
"I'm sure whatever route you picked is perfect, now leave!", Ash said as he pushed Max up the stairs and out of the basement. Max quickly turned around as Ash grabbed the latch door.
"But I", Max said before being cut off by the shutting of the door. As silence entered the basement, Ash sighed with relief. He then made his way down the stairs, where Pikachu stood waiting.
"Things are starting to get out of hand Pikachu, that was too close!", Ash said. Pikachu nodded. Ash then reached into his pocket and pulled out the red pouch. It was a dark red pouch made out of a soft fabric with golden draw strings. "Good thing I finished these before Max came down". He gently tossed the bag into the air a few times, catching it as it fell every time. He then placed the bag into his pocket again. "Alright Pikachu, after our hike I'll give Misty these, then hopefully she'll finally smile and accept that she's still one of us...I just hope she doesn't find it too cheesy", Ash said.
"Pika", Pikachu said positively. He then ran up Ash's leg and planted himself on his usual perch; Ash's shoulder.
"Ok, let's go!", Ash said. When everyone was prepared for the hike, they sat and looked at Max's route. The hike consisted of a path starting at the house and going through the woods. It would then lead to the main road, where they would cross and continue down another path. They would then go around a rather strenuous mountain trail and then down a bike trail back to the original path, which would finally lead them home. Although his route was long, Max predicted that it would be a relatively short hike, which suited the others just fine. The gang then left the house and made their way to the first path. This just so happened to be the path that Ash and Misty took on their first day at the lake house. Upon realizing this, Ash quickly steered the rest of the group away from the path that lead to the spot. They all seemed confused as to why he was acting in this way and still wanted to follow the path. But suddenly, Dawn spoke up, saying that she wanted to go the other way as well. Ash was not sure why she said this, but it seemed to work since the others decided that they would go around this path then. Ash sighed with relief. The hike itself was easy at first, since they were only going uphill at a slight slope and it was not muddy. After about ten minutes the gang made some great progress and were moving at a quick pace. But suddenly, Max, (who was leading the pack), stopped, which caused the others to do the same. Max looked ahead of him, then down to his map, and then back to the path. Not to far ahead of him was a fork in the route. One way leading towards the direction of the main road, the other going downhill the opposite direction. Max turned around to face the others, a little embarrassed.
"Uh, hehe, sorry guys, I missed this on the map", Max said.
"Missed what?", Ash asked. Max held up the map and pointed to a spot on it.
"This is where we are, as I made the route for us to follow, I didn't notice this fork in front of us. This second path leads down the hill and around the lake for a bit before returning in a circle here. So I guess now we have two options. We can either go down the left trail, which is the one I made out, or go down the right. It's just as long, but without the hard hike around the mountain", Max explained. Everyone thought for a moment, not exactly sure what to do. Jessie then stepped forward.
"Well I know what I'm doing. I didn't go on vacation to make much effort on anything", Jessie explained. She then walked ahead of the others and began her way down the right trail towards the lake. Everyone watched her for a moment until Dawn stepped forward.
"I guess I'll go down that way too, I think the lake will be more scenic than the mountain", Dawn explained.
"Ok then, so I guess we'll all head this way and whoever doesn't want the harder hike can go with Dawn and Jessie", Brock suggested. Everyone else nodded. May grabbed Dawn's arm and they made their way down the right trail as the others went down the left one. Misty was about to leave when she turned around and saw Ash and Pikachu, standing there in deep contemplation. Misty approached them.
"Uh, what are you guys doing?", Misty asked. Ash looked at her for a moment.
"Well, we have no idea what path we want to follow", Ash explained. He then returned to thought, closing his eyes and putting his hand to his chin. Pikachu did the same. Misty giggled and grabbed Ash's arm.
"Here, I'll decide for you", Misty said. She then pulled Ash with her down the right trail. Before they knew it, Ash, Misty, and Pikachu had caught up with the other three girls and they made their way down the path. Jessie remained ahead of them, ignoring them as if she was on the path alone.
"So Dawn, are you beginning to feel more accepted?", May asked Dawn in a slight whisper. Although it was hushed down, Pikachu was still able to pick up their conversation. He perked his ears this way and that until he could listen in better.
"Uhm, well...", Dawn replied. May sighed.
"Dawn, I don't get it, we're all nice to you, we don't treat you differently, how is it that you feel left out?", May asked. Dawn sighed.
"Well...I don't know. I just feel like a third wheel. While we travel in Sinnoh, Ash and Brock always talk about their past journeys and I'm just always listening. We never talk about what's occurred on our journey together. I feel like, I don't know, like I have to pass some sort of "initiation" before being one of you", Dawn explained in detail. As May and Dawn continued to talk, Pikachu brought himself closer to Ash and began to whisper in his ear. Ash listened carefully to what his little Pokemon had to say.
"I don't think there's any initiation to be one of us Dawn", May joked. "You'd be surprised how quickly we all got accepted by one another. In fact, the only thing I can think of as an initiation is Ash destroying your bike, which if I recall, automatically qualifies you!". The girls then both laughed. The laughing seemed to annoy Jessie and she glanced over her shoulder to see the two teens.
"Hey, would you mind cooling it down back there", Jessie said irritated. May and Dawn looked at Jessie. Jessie looked back to what was ahead of her. "Bad enough that I have to put up with it in the attic, I don't want to have to put up with it out here".
"Oh come on Jessie, this whole vacation you've done nothing but complain! You're missing out on the whole meaning of a vacation!", May explained.
"Yeah, when are you finally going to have fun Jessie?", Dawn asked. Jessie suddenly stopped, causing the others behind her to do so as well. She then turned around and faced May and Dawn with a annoyed expression.
"Alright listen, the reason why I'm not having fun is because I haven't been on vacation in years. You'd be surprised what Team Rocket's vacation terms are", Jessie explained. Misty stepped forward.
"So the problem isn't that you're choosing to not have fun, the problem is...you don't know exactly how?", Misty guessed. Jessie began to get slightly angry.
"I don't think I need to explain myself to all of you twerps, let's just keep going shall we?", Jessie said. She then turned around and continued to walk down the path. The girls all looked at each other and Ash looked at Pikachu, all confused. Jessie, still walking, made a blush of embarrassment across her face, but tried to hide it. The path, as predicted, did go for a long way, but they seemed to make progress quickly. Soon, they were all at the lake. As the girls all gazed at the beauty of this section of water, Pikachu continued to whisper in Ash's ear. He nodded for a bit and then went into thought. He then began to whisper himself.
"You know, I didn't really realize this, but it seems that Misty isn't the only one having problems here", Ash said. Pikachu nodded. "I mean, Dawn finds it hard to feel accepted, Jessie doesn't know how to relax and enjoy life, and then there's Misty...". As he said this, he looked at the red headed girl, who ignored his private discussion and gazed at the lake. "You know what I think Pikachu? I think that the little surprise we made for Misty, should be shared with the rest of our friends. I even feel guilty for not realizing that they were having problems too. Well not anymore", Ash explained. He then looked at Pikachu and they both nodded. Ash stepped forward, closer to the girls. "Uh, I think we should start making our way back, the others might be there already". The girls nodded and made their way along the path once more. Before long, their trail made a circle and they found themselves returning to where they started. Once there, they only waited for a minute or two before the others came walking towards them. Max ran forward to her sister with excitement in his eyes.
"Oh man, you missed it May, it was an amazing hike! We saw so many different types of Pokemon that we never see home!", Max stated.
"Oh did you now? That's great!", May said.
"Yeah, and James slipped and slid down a hill and into a tree", Brock said with a laugh. After he said this James came into view, his head down in embarrassment.
"Good thing those rocks slowed me down", James said with no enthusiasm.
"What about you guys?", Brock asked. Ash looked at the girls and then back to Brock.
"Nothing too big, just a quiet little walk", Ash responded. Brock nodded. "Alright then, should we head back?"
"Yeah I guess", Brock responded. The others then began to head down the path they started with. Because the trail was familiar to them now, going back took a shorter time than going ahead. Upon reaching the vicinity of the house, Ash felt a tug on his arm. He stopped walking, allowing the others to go ahead of him, and turned around. There he saw Misty, who was smiling slightly.
"Ash...thank you", Misty said. Ash smiled, even if he didn't know what for.
"For what?", Ash asked.
"For keeping our little hidden spot a secret, I appreciate it", Misty answered.
"Of course Misty, remember, you're my best humanfriend", Ash said with emphasis on human. Pikachu nodded in satisfaction. "I told you that I would keep it a secret between us, and I intend to do so. Just like I intend on making this vacation worth while for you". Misty smiled, but in that smile, Ash could detect a sense of doubt. "Misty...what's wrong?". Misty's smile faded and she lowered her head.
"There's no need for all of this...for any of this", Misty said. Ash was going to ask what she meant by this but she continued. "I may have been your best friend before, but I left you, I stayed in Cerulean City while you traveled around the world making new friends. I don't deserve a friend like you, I should just be forgotten". Ash could not believe the words that were coming out of her mouth. How could she think that she was so un-deserving? Misty tried to step past Ash to go in the house, but Ash grabbed hold of her arm, stopping her.
"I refuse to let one of my friends drown herself in self doubt! I don't care what you think you've done wrong or how long it's been since we've seen each other, there is no way that I will accept that!", Ash said in a normal but stern tone. Misty's eyes widened in shock. He had never spoken like this before for anything less than saving the world; why would he do it now, was it that important? Without even turning around to face him Ash continued. "I have something that will hopefully end this, come inside". Ash then walked forward, past Misty and towards the house, where he assumed everyone else was already. Misty remained behind in disbelief for a moment, unsure of exactly what had just occurred. But she soon gathered her thoughts together and walked towards the house as well. She walked up to the front door and placed her hand on the handle. But before opening it, she thought of what Ash could possibly have in store for her. She wasn't sure if it would be something that would change their relationship or not. But she decided that there would be no way of finding out unless she went inside. So she turned the door knob and entered the lake house. Upon entering, she saw Ash on the other side of the house, near the dining room table. Near him was Tracy, Gary, Team Rocket, Max, and Pikachu, all of their eyes on either Ash or Misty.
"What's going on?", Misty asked as she stepped closer. Suddenly, the remainder of the house guests came down the stairs, May being in front of them.
"Why did you call us down Ash? I was going to take a nap", May said yawning, her arms in the air stretching. Ash stepped forward a bit.
"I called everyone because I want to give you all something", Ash explained. Everyone, Misty in particular, looked intrigued. Ash then smiled at Pikachu, who gave a happy nod back. He then reached into the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out the dark reg bag. Max looked at this and realized that this was the item that Ash was hiding from him earlier. Ash put his fingers at the clump that closed the bag and pulled on it, making the draw string give way. Once open, he reached into the bag and pulled out multiple small objects. He handed them to Pikachu, who took them and then scampered down his leg. Once Pikachu was out of the way, Ash walked towards Misty and put his hand back into the bag. "Hold out your hand", Ash told Misty. She did so willingly, still confused. Ash pulled out one of the objects from the bag. He examined it briefly, as if to check if it was the proper one, and then placed it in Misty's hand with a smile. Ash then stepped back to hand out the ones remaining in the bag. Misty opened her hand to see that the small object was in fact a small stone, polished so that it gleamed in the light. She turned it over to see, inscribed in a dark red, were the words "Free for a friend (no limit)". She was now more confused than before.
"What is it?", Misty asked. Ash looked back at her with a smile.
"That Misty, is what I call, a token of my appreciation", Ash said. Tracy chuckled at the pun. "I am forever grateful for having you all as my friends, so I made these to show for it". After he said this, Pikachu tugged on his pant leg. Ash looked down and immediately realized his mistake. "Oh, with Pikachu's help of course", Ash corrected. Pikachu gave a positive "Pika!".
"But...I don't understand", Misty stammered.
"These tokens on them all say what they can be used for, we can use them amongst ourselves. This way, we can share our friendship", Ash explained. After he said this, everyone examined their respective token much more intently. Brock, after doing so, smiled.
"It's made of Pewter", Brock stated, referring to the stone.
"Yeah, I thought you might like that", Ash said. May looked at her Pewter token.
"Good for one free hug...oh I'm going to use mine right now!", May said. She then pressed the token into Drew's hand. As soon as he took it, May quickly reached her arms around Drew and hugged him, giggling as she did so. Drew blushed. Gary, who was now sitting on the couch, looked at his stone.
"The bearer of this token shall be used as a punching bag for the one who needs it...ARE YOU KIDDING ME!", Gary yelled. he then crossed his arms in protest. As the others studied their stones, Ash turned around to see Team Rocket. He then reached into his pouch and pulled out three more tokens and tossed them to the three. They caught them and gazed at the tokens, and then back to Ash in bewilderment.
"For us too?", James said astonished. Ash nodded.
"I figured that once the treaty expires, you guys won't be associating with us in a friendly way, so I made yours separate from ours. If you look, your words are embroiled in yellow, not red", Ash explained. They looked at their tokens and noticed that they were indeed of a different color. "Now you can use them with each other", Ash said. James and Jessie looked at the stones and began to grow teary eyed, while Jessie seemed more shocked than happily sad. Sitting on the couch next to Gary were Max and Dawn. Dawn looked at her token.
"Good for one free kiss...hmm, now who could I use that on?", Dawn asked herself out loud in serious thought. Next to her, Max began to sweat and gave a nervous gulp. Dawn looked over to Max and noticed this. "Max, are you ok?". Max immediately tried to steady himself but failed miserably.
"Uh, yeah! Yeah, I'm fine, oky doky! Completely normal!", Max said in a panic. Dawn sweatdropped.
"O...k...", Dawn replied. As everyone talked about their tokens to themselves, Misty's gaze remained solely on the token. She felt the inscribed words with her thumb, as if making sure it was real. She looked up for a moment to see Ash staring down at the token she had as well. Realizing that Misty was no longer looking at it, he brought his attention to her.
"You see, now you can cope with all of us. Now, you don't have to be an outcast", Ash said. He then grasped both of Misty's hands together, the token within them. "Now...you don't have to be alone". Misty looked at Ash with an expression that showed a mixture of feelings. Ash smiled, unsure of her reaction, but positive that it would be a good one. Suddenly, Misty shut her eyes, tears streaming down them. She broke free of Ash's grip, turned around, and ran. Everyone watched in shock and bewilderment as she ran between May and Drew and out the front door, slamming it shut behind her. Ash broke out of his stupor and began to ran after her. "Misty!". As he reached for the door, Brock stopped him by putting his hand on his shoulder.
"Ash! Misty just needs some time alone", Brock said trying to calm the worried Pokemon trainer. Ash turned to face him, his hand still reached out for the door knob.
"But she", Ash said before being cut off.
"You know as well as I do that you running after her will only make the situation worse", Brock stated. Ash hated to hear this but knew he was right. He put his head down and lowered his out-stretched hand. Everyone seemed stunned, not sure if they should talk or not. They simply stared at each other. Suddenly, Tracy stood up.
"It's alright, she's just got to take it all in is all", Tracy said. "I think we should start dinner, let her have her time to think it over, and then we can get her when it's ready. Come on". Although reluctantly, everyone left the room to either go upstairs or to go help in the Kitchen. Tracy looked at Brock and nodded. Brock nodded back, and Tracy went to the Kitchen as well. Once he was gone, Ash, Brock, and Pikachu were the only ones left in the room.
"So tell me, was this all part of a plan?", Brock asked. Pikachu and Ash looked at each other in worry, still trying to hide the truth.
"Uh, what do you mean!", Ash asked. Brock then put his hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out his token. He showed it to Ash and it said "Good for one free truth-full conversation". Ash read it and sighed. "I knew I'd regret making that one", he said annoyed. "Alright yes, I made a plan during this trip to try to get closer to Misty". After saying this, he walked to the couch, sat down, and put his face in his hands. Brock looked at him in thought.
"Those tokens were never originally for everyone were they?", Brock said, knowing the answer already.
"No, they weren't. They were originally for just Misty to use, but soon, I realized that other people here were having problems of their own, and since Misty's problem involved friendship", Ash stated, he was cut off.
"You decided that it would be best for her and the others having problems if we shared them...as friends", Brock finished. Ash nodded.
"But now it doesn't matter, I screwed it up", Ash said. Brock sat down next to Ash and placed his hand on his shoulder.
"But you didn't! You did everything perfectly!", Brock insisted. Ash looked at him.
"Then what happened? What went wrong that would have Misty act that way?", Ash asked. Brock thought for a moment.
"I'm not sure, but I think it's because she blames herself for everything", Brock said. Ash knew that she did, but wasn't sure how that had anything to do with it.
"What do you mean?", Ash asked confused.
"I think Misty thinks that it's her fault she left in the first place. Her not being with us, namely you, on our journeys and meeting new friends hurt her. But because she blames herself, she thinks that everyone else should move on because of the mistake that she made. And I think you trying to to get her to forgive herself is making the thoughts and memories more painful", Brock explained. Ash took all of this in. The idea that he was causing more pain than comfort bothered him.
"What do I do then?", Ash asked worried.
"For now nothing, let her relax. When she comes back you can talk to her and explin what you were trying to do", Brock suggested. Ash nodded and smiled.
"Alright...thanks Brock", Ash said. Brock nodded back.
"No problem", Brock said. Suddenly, there was a barrage of heavy knocks coming from the back door; by the driveway. Pikachu's ears perked up and he ran to the door. Ash and Brock stood up and followed. Gary, who was already in the Kitchen, reached the door first, Dawn right behind him. Gary opened the door to see the old man they had met at the store the day before; his Granbull at his side. He was gasping for breath.
"Hey, you're that hiker we met at the store", Ash recalled. Gary approached him.
"You look tired, do you need a rest?", Gary asked. The old man shrugged it off.
"There's no time for that now. I came down to warn you kids that there's a storm coming!", the old man said. Ash, Gary, and Brock gasped. Dawn looked at him with worry, but confusement.
"But shouldn't the houses around here be built to resist storms!", Dawn asked.
"Normally yes, but this is supposed to be the storm of the century. High winds, hard rain, lightning, you name it. The houses may not hold up too well against that", the old man warned. Ash gasped and turned around to the front door.
"Oh no! Misty!", Ash yelled. He then ran as fast as he could out the other way, Pikachu right behind him. Brock and Dawn looked back to him.
"ASH!", Brock yelled. But he was already gone.
"I'm gonna warn go warn the other residents in the area, you be sure to batin down the hatches! Come on Granbull!", the old man said. Granbull responded with a grunt and the two ran back outside. This left Brock, Gary, and Dawn alone.
"What do we so now!", Dawn asked. Brock looked at the ground in serious thought.
"...get ready", Brock answered. With this said, Gary made a full sprint for the stairs while Dawn ran to the basement. Brock stood there alone. Then he turned around and looked at the front door. "Bring her home soon Ash".
FINALLY! ACTUAL SUSPENSE AND DANGER! Missed writing about that. Well what do you think? Alot for them to worry about now huh? "With the storm of the century fast approaching, will Ash be able to save Misty in time? Will the house be in danger? Could lives be lost? Find out next time in the thrilling installment of EVAN AAML'S "The Lake House"!". Well, you all know what to do, review and such. Don't forget about your costumes for Halloween now! Until, see you all later!
sincerely,
evan, a fan of aaml -EVAN AAML
