Ash walked through the trees, cautiously leading Misty and Pikachu back to their shelter. He had forgotten how exhausted he was, but now he was beginning to feel it again, along with the cold rain numbing his body. Suddenly, he halted, sliding on the grass, and turned.
"Oh...shoot!" he cried, throwing up his arms. "Ah...wait here! Don't move!" He darted back through the grass.
"But...Ash! Hey!" Misty called, but he was already gone.
A few minutes later Ash returned, holding up his PokeDex to show Misty.
"James dropped this when he ran off, and it's a good thing he did! I don't know what I'd do without it, and I nearly lost it there!"
They walked on ahead, finally finding the trail, and followed it until the found their tree. "Whew...at least we're drier now," Misty said in relief as she crawled beneath it's leaves. "Yeah, but it's still could," Ash said, sitting next to her against the trunk, just as it had been earlier...but so, so much different now. Ash couldn't help but smile.
"Um, you know...it would be warmer for both of us if...if we, ar...er..." Ash paused, "...sat a little closer."
Misty eyed him, a funny looked on her face. But...she didn't slug Ash in the face as he had anticipated...hey, maybe she had actually gotten nicer.
"I...don't know about this, Ash Ketchem. Do you feel okay?"
At that he laughed and said, "No...no...here, at least let me keep you warm. Your wearing a tank top, for crying out loud!"
Misty watched him for a moment, then shrugged and scooted closer to Ash. Cautiously, he slid his arm around her, rubbing her arm to put warmth back into it.
A few minutes later, she looked at him. "Thanks," she told him.
He smiled. "No problem." He sat back a bit, relaxing slightly. "Hey...I wonder what happened to Brock. He's been gone too long, I think he should be back by now."
"Aw, don't worry about him," Misty told him, "He can take care of himself." She closed her eyes.
Ash relaxed even more, sighing softly, and held Misty just a little closer.
* * * * * *
James dashed blindly through the trees, never slowing down, but knowing he had to keep running. He had to get away.
So now what? He'd had all of his happiness snatched away from him with just a few words. Now that he knew...what could possibly matter more than what he had lost? It was all gone. But, well, at least he had found out about it now. How much longer would it have been until he did unless the boy hadn't told him? He could have been making it up, but it was just too believable, and suddenly it made so much sense.
He ran across the trail, the rain seeming to sting like a thousand nails across his face. He was breathing in deeper now, and more quickly. He felt the air seem to grow thin as he ran into the grass at the other side of the trail, his mind still replaying the words Ash had said. Stupid kid. Maybe...maybe he SHOULDN'T have told him the truth. At least he would be happy.
James ran through the thick grass, his right foot catching in it. He didn't even try to stop his body from slamming into the ground. It wasn't worth the effort. He didn't care. He gulped, and tears began streaming from his eyes.
He wailed, not so much from physical pain, really, but more from what he felt. He lay there on his stomach, his head in his hands, still crying. So what if he cried? It didn't matter. Maybe he would drown in his own tears, or maybe the rain would do that. Whatever. Just make it quick.
It wasn't long before the grass behind him began to rustle. He groaned, not turning, crying out. "Get out of here! Can't...can't you see I don't want to..see anyone? Especially you! Go...go..." He was still sobbing, and he buried his head in his arms at the thought of talking to anyone now.
It was Jessie, just as James knew it had to be. She approached slowly, scared to see him like this, but knowing that nothing could stop her. This was still James.
"James...James..." she whimpered, stepping forward slowly. "What's happened to you?" He barely rose his head. "Oh, just bug off. You...you don't have any feelings...you don't care!"
She blinked, stepping faster until she was at his side. She knelt by him, lifted his head from his arms, and slapped him squarely in the face.
"Don't I?"
James was extremely startled, even to the point of speechlessness. The tears automatically stopped. He stared at her, opening his mouth to speak, but the words didn't come.
"James. Do you get it? Your the one without feelings!" She glared at him, frowning.
He shook his head, breaking down into tears again. "You, Jessie..." He tried to speak between sobs. your under a trance, don't you see?" He sat up, abruptly grabbing her. "You don't get it...don't you remember that Carefree?! You inhaled all that powder...you saw me...you...you fell in love with me!!! It's nothing, Jessie...NOTHING! It's fake!!!" He shook her. "You don't MEAN A WORD of what you said about loving me!!" He wailed, breathing in deeply.
She broke away from his hold. "But your being foolish! Don't you at least see that? I'm not under a trance, James. This is really me!!"
"I don't know that your just _saying_ that!" James cried, lowering his head. "You don't even know what your saying."
"James...this is really me. And I love you...truly. There's nothing else to it. You only think that I'm under a trance or something else crazy, but ever since we kissed that night, I knew once and for all that I was in love with you! I wish, more that anything, that you could just see that!" She looked at him, his head still down.
"You can't prove it, Jessie..." he said, more calmly now. "I'd rather be dead than live like this, and you are only making it worse by saying you _can_ prove it. It was all fake, and there's nothing you can do to prove otherwise." He sniffed.
She lifted his head, gazing into his green eyes. "James, I can prove it."
She leaned down quickly and kissed him on the lips.
"James," she whispered, pulling away a few moments later, "This is really me. It's Jessie. Listen...I really do love you, and all I can think about is how much I love you at this moment. James...sure your angry, and I don't blame you for it, but really, this is the Jessie you've always known...but I do care about you. I really wish you could see..." Her face was serious, worried. She waited.
James was staring blankly into her face. He looked at her for nearly a minute, right into her eyes. His lip quivered. He threw his arms around her, holding her, bursting into tears. She squeezed him back, comforting him. She was crying now, too.
"I...I'm...I'm so so...rr...y, sorry, Jessie. I ..I love you, OK? I'm soo sorry! *sniff* I didn't mean what I s...said then! Please *sniff* forgive me for being..a jerk..." He cried, the tears raining from his eyes. "I believe you!"
She smiled at this, though her lip was quivering. "I know...I know...I forgive you...It's o...Ok now"
They embraced for several minutes, the cold rain showering them still, though they didn't feel it. They sniffed, pulling away, looking at each other. They were smiling now, even though they were both still crying.
"Jessie..I really am sorry. Now...I feel better than before."
"Good. I don't want you to be sad like that...ever again. Just don't cry..." James touched her cheek.
"Well....uhm, It's been quite a day. But it ended well, I'd say." James sighed, the tears stopping at last. "I suppose we should get going. What do you say?"
"Where?" she asked him.
"We'll go down the mountain," he told her. "We don't need to be here anymore. I have all I want here already, and I can barely remember _why_ we even came here...but your all I need...that doesn't matter..."
"Awww...." Meowth cooed from behind, smiling.
Jessie and James laughed, hugging each other again, then rising to their feet.
"Fine, Meowth. It's true, though." James and Jessie were completely soaked through and through by the rain, not to mention eyes red from the tears, and they stood shivering over Meowth.
"What? You mean, we're leaving?" asked Meowth in surprise.
"Yes, we are."
"Why?" Meowth whined, extending his arms out in annoyance.
"Why? Why? Meowth--this Pokemon is...well, let's just say it has a power that's more powerful that any other I've seen."
"Yeah, sure. All the more reason to capture it! The Boss would---"
"Ah, forget him for now, Meowth. You can't understand what this Pokemon can do unless you've experienced it for yourself. Just--trust me." He smiled at Jessie, and they walked toward the trail, Meowth following them, still a little disgusted.
* * * * * *
The beat of the rain was slowing. It had been raining so long, it was about time. Ash leaned against the tree's trunk, Misty asleep by his side. He was still holding on to her. He wondered if it helped to make her warmer, though he doubted it had done much good. It had made him feel better, anyway. He knew she really loved him, deep down , it was true.
He didn't want to fall asleep. Even Pikachu was napping in the grass at his feet, but Ash wanted to remain awake. He wanted to wait and look out for anything that might come down the path. He felt like he was standing guard, or something.
He breathed in slowly, letting his eyes close for just a minute. His breathing steadied, and the rain soothed him. He felt warm, with his arm around Misty, and the sturdy tree sheltering them. They were safe.
His mind drifted, sleep just starting to take over his exhausted body. Suddenly, the pattern of the falling rain was broken. A splashing noise sounded from nearby, and Ash's eyes shot open. He scanned the trail, above the grass, and in the trees beyond.
"...Uh...huh?" Misty muttered, her eyes opening.
"Misty--something's coming..."
Misty sat forward, peering onto the trail, next to Ash.
"I can hear it," she whispered.
The splashing was coming slowly, growing a little louder every moment. Both Ash and Misty watched the trail, Pikachu on Ash's leg. A blur came into view...green, black, orange...Ash's eyes focused...
"Brock!" Ash yelled, jumping up onto the trail. He ran to his friend, who was sloshing slowly through the mud, his head bowed.
"Brock-O! Brock...you're back!" Ash said.
"Uh...A--Ash?" His friend muttered, rubbing his head. "I...found you!"
Ash looked him over. He looked terrible--torn clothes, scratches, muddy--at least as bad or worse than Ash himself looked. He wondered what had happened.
"Man, Brock...what happened to _you_?" Ash helped the weak Brock down the trail. "Wow, Brock--you look like a truck hit you!" Misty observed, her voice somewhat concerned. She took his other arm, helping him toward the tree.
Brock trudged through the mud, and under the branches of the tree. Misty and Ash sat him against the trunk, sitting by his side.
"Oh...that was...just the...weirdest thing..." Brock panted, his hand over his brow.
"Well, what happened?" enquired Misty, nudging him softly. "Well...I was just out in the rain...I guess. I don't even...remember what I was doing out there...hmmm. But, I do recall that my head...my head just started hurting--pounding, just aching like a terrible headache. Then, after that, I fell down a wet slope...knocked me out for a while. When I woke up...I just saw this trail, and I remembered it. I just thought, in the back of my mind, that you would be here, and...and you were. But I just...forgot." He shook his head.
"Aw, that sounds so weird, Brock," Misty said, thinking. "You know, something like that happened to me, too! Earlier--my head...I guess it's just the weather, or something."
Ash was silent. A smile crept over his face. There was no doubting it now--the trance had been broken.
* * * * * *
The sun rose over the hazy mountain, as if to lift the clouds away. Finally, the long rain storm had ran it's course during the night, and the only traces of it now was the moisture in the air and the cool mist blanketing the forest.
Three figures walked up the trail, all looking tired, yet eager. The one with blue hair pointed up a path.
"I'm sure it's up here," he told his partners. "I swear the balloon is just around here..."
"I hope it didn't blow away or something," said Jessie, walking at his side.
"We'll see it if it's still there," Meowth added. "You can't miss a face like mine!"
"The trees are so high up here, it's hard to see anything ahead," Jessie said.
They wound through the trail a while, keeping their eyes peeled for their only transportation. Finally, after several minutes, James stopped.
"Over there...you see that?" He pointed into the trees, off the trail a little. There it was, a mass of brownish material, lying in the grass.
They trudged quickly to it, and Meowth pointed out the basket.
"This is a mess," Jessie observed, "but it's nothing Team Rocket can't fix. I bet we can get it to fly again..."
She looked it over, and soon she and the others were at work gathering up the balloon. Luckily, it hadn't taken much damage, and would still be worthy to fly with a few adjustments. They set it up, patched it, and soon, they were ready to go.
James hopped into the basket and began warming it up. After a short wait, the balloon was ready to fly. He helped Jessie into the basket first, holding her close, and Meowth hopped in a moment later.
"Hm. Well, I guess were ready now," James said. Jessie nodded. James lifted the balloon above the trees.
Meowth sighed, watching the forest below become buried in a soft haze. "You know guys, I think it's really too bad we're leaving. I don't know exactly _what_ happened, but this Pokemon could have been our big break!"
"Big Break? The only thing I want now _is_ a break!"James said. "Let's just go on a little vacation...the Boss won't even miss us. Besides, he can live without another new Pokemon, I think." He hugged Jessie closer, and she looked up at him, smiling.
"Yeah..." Meowth said, "but where will we go?"
James shrugged his shoulders slightly. "Heh, I don't know. Wherever the wind takes us, for now. Just not back to report to the Boss."
Meowth shrugged, sitting down. "I guess that's OK."
Jessie rested her head on James' chest. "I can't believe we're finally leaving." She moved a lose hair out of James' face, the breeze blowing it back into place. "But if we hadn't ever came here...things would be a lot different now. Way, way different."
James looked down at her.
"I'm glad, too." He leaned down and kissed her on the check. She hugged him tighter, sighing contentedly as they watched the sky.
The balloon slowly vanished in the mist beyond the mountain.
* * * * * *
Ash looked to his right as he and his friends walked down the moist, grass-lined path in the early morning. There was Misty, and Brock, too, next to her. But not too close. Just as close as he had ever gotten to her before this whole thing started. Not holding hands, not giggling together, not snuggling.
What was he thinking? That was _all_ over now. He shook the very thought from his mind. He would tell himself it was a dream..no, a nightmare. He'd pretend it had never happened.
"Ash? A-aaash...are you OK?" Misty waved her hand before his dazed eyes. "Huh? Just daydreaming," he admitted, smiling a little.
"You are the strangest boy I know, Ash," Misty told him bluntly. He shrugged it off, not even caring like he might have if she had said the same thing a few days before.
Ash felt like he could never get mad at her, not now that he knew the truth about how she really felt. Of course, he found it a little harder now to look Brock in the eye, but he really tried to act like nothing had happened now that it was over. They didn't know...didn't have a clue. He'd keep it that way.
But, here they were. And there she was. He'd kissed this girl, and had saved her, and yet, she had absolutely no idea of what he had done for her.
"Look you guys!" Brock said, "I remember this place some how...that's the main trail up ahead. It won't take us too long now to get down."
"Good! We're finally leaving this mountain!" Misty said. "Now maybe Ash realizes he can't catch every Pokemon in the world!" She smirked at him.
"Maybe not,"Ash said harmlessly. Misty's face suddenly became puzzled.
"Huh? What?"
"What?"
Misty wrinkled her brow. "You always get mad...when I say stuff like that." "I was just agreeing with you...maybe you're right."
"Well...well...what's wrong with you? I thought I'd make you really mad by saying that!"
"Were you trying to?"
"I....I....I don't know..."
She stopped talking, confused by Ash's sudden attitude change.
"Listen Misty. I don't want to argue about stupid things. That's your opinion, and maybe your right. But ever since we met we've been arguing and fighting over dumb things. I'm done with that." He looked at more seriously now.
Her face became vague.
"I...honestly never thought I'd hear _you_ say that. You act like you've almost grown up or something."
"You have _no_ idea," Ash muttered.
They walked on in awkward silence for another minute. Then, Misty looked over at Ash again.
"Ok. I feel the same way."
Ash looked up.
"Ash...I guess your right, I don't want to argue. So..." She paused, as if it was hard to say any more. "So...let's just stop. No more fighting, OK?"
Hearing this, Brock fell over in the mud. "..Ah?!?!"
"Good." Ash said. He didn't show it, but he felt as if a ton had been lifted from his shoulders. "I'm glad you feel the same way." Ash's heart felt lighter, too.
After Brock had 'recovered', they were soon walking down the main trail, right down the way they had come up.
They passed the meadow, where they had first seen the Carefree. Ash wondered for a moment if he'd ever see a Carefree again. Well, it would probably be for the best if he never did. He hoped Starzia could keep them safe. But, he figured that, at the very least, he wouldn't tell anyone about Carefree, or his experience with them.
It wasn't much longer until the trees grew more sparsely, and the ground was less moist. They were almost down. Going downhill was much faster than going up.
Ash thought one more time about everything that had happened ever since he started the journey up the mountain. The Carefree, Team Rocket, Starzia, and finally breaking the spell. So many things had happened to change his life. And, as he looked over at Misty smiling at him, he knew that he would never give it up for anything.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * The End ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *
P.S.
Thanks to all of you who told me to finish this and knew it wasn't what it seemed from the start, and didn't judge it as being a bad BAMRN (Brock and Misty Romance Novel) until they finished and found it was really what they wanted it to be. They didn't complain, but waited to see what would happen. I wish there were more people like that. I personally don't even like the idea of BAMRNs very much so I'm not surprised a lot of you people trashed my story, I was asking for it. I learned that ANYONE brave enough to write a BAMRN probably deserves some credit, because everyone will criticize it for being that. But from the start, this story was destined to become an AAMRN (Ash and Misty Romance Novel).
. The reason it took me so long to get the other parts up was because I didn't think anyone wanted to really read it. Some people, very few, in fact, wanted more parts but everyone else wouldn't shut up with the "Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeew! BROCK AND MISTY!!!!!!" But guess what? *FanFictions are SUPPOSED to break barriers and be different from what the show really is. It's what the author wishes they could change about the show. That's the main reason WHY most of these people write fanfics here at fanfiction.net or anywhere else.*
Again, thank you for reading my 1st Pokemon fan fic, and I hope you enjoyed reading it as I did writing it!
~StarGlider
E-mail me with comments, compliments or complaints at star_glider@juno.com