Chapter 10
"Bittersweet Return"
It was a long, bumpy, and uncomfortable ride back to the Indigo Plateau. When we finally got there, Jessie, James, and Meowth let us out.
"Be careful, twerp," Jessie told me, "If you lose this competition, the boss won't be happy with you."
That's not what I'm worried about…
"…I'll be careful," I said.
"You'd better. Because if you win, that means that everyone in the whole world will respect Team Rocket!" James said.
That's not good.
"Shut up, you guys," Misty said. She turned to me. "Just do your best, Ash. I know you can do it. Don't worry about anyone else. Do this for yourself…It's your dream, isn't it?"
Yeah……It…was my dream……I'm not so sure about that anymore…
"I'll do fine," I said, hoping that would get them to shut up.
"We'd better tell the officials that you're here," Richie said, "They're still out looking for you. Once they see that you're okay, the tournament can start up again."
"…Good luck, Ash," said Billie.
"You're gonna need more than luck!" Misty grinned, "…Come on. Let's hurry up and get this over with."
"We'll be watching…from a distance…" Jessie said, "Uh…We can't give away your little…secret, now can we?…Billie, that goes for you too."
Billie gave her a dangerous look. "I'll watch from wherever I please. Don't think you're the only ones that know how to put on a disguise."
Billie changed her clothes inside of Team Rocket's truck. When she came out, she was wearing a dark red-purple shirt and black jeans. Then we, with the exception of Jessie, James, and Meowth, headed towards the main building.
* * *
"Excuse me…" Richie said to the lady at the counter, "Um…We found Ash."
"…What?" she asked.
"We found Ash. He's here right now."
Richie pointed at me. I waved shyly.
"Huh? But……Oh!! You mean-!…That's great!! Ash! You're okay!"
"Uh-huh…" I said.
"Let me tell Mr. Goodshow. You guys don't know what a relief this is. Thank you so much!"
I laughed nervously.
She picked up a phone and started dialing a number. Then she looked back at us.
"You can go to your cabin now, if you want. I'll let you know what time your match will be. Don't be late!" She gave me a meaningful glance.
"You won't have to worry about that," I said, "I'll be early this time."
"Huh. You'd better be," Misty said.
We walked back to our hotel room. It seemed like such a long time since I'd been here. I noticed that some people were staring at us as we walked past, then they would turn and whisper to each other. It was really…unsettling.
Misty opened the door and let us in. I don't know why, but I hung to the back.
"Who is it?" I heard Professor Oak call.
"It's us!" Misty replied, "And you'll never guess who's with us!"
"Huh?"
First, Professor Oak, then my mom came through the door to the next room. They're faces wore expressions of surprise, then happiness. Mom rushed to me right away and squeezed me as tight as she could.
"Oh! Ash!! I was so worried!! Oh…I thought…"
"Mom…" I gasped, "Mom, I can't breathe…"
She held me out to look at me.
"Ash…"
She was…She was crying…
I couldn't think of anything to say.
"Ash Ketchum…Don't you dare let that happen again!! I was so scared…I thought that…I……" She choked up and just hugged me again, not as tight this time. I hugged her back.
"I'm okay…It's okay, Mom…I'm fine."
She touched my bandages.
"What… happened to you?" she asked softly.
"…Nothing……It's okay. It's not as bad as it looks…"
Actually, it was worse, but she didn't need to know that.
"I missed you."
"Me too."
"…………I can't take it anymore…" I heard Billie whisper, "That is just so sweet!"
Misty giggled. "Yeah……"
There was a moment of silence, then she let go of me.
"Ash, you are going to apologize to everybody for making them wait and worry all this time! Do you know how anxious everyone was!?"
"Uh…Well…" I blushed.
"There'll be time for that later," Professor Oak said gently, "For now, let's just be happy that he's back."
"Yeah…"
* * *
"So…what Pokémon are you going to use against Richie?" Misty asked me.
After everyone had settled down, Richie had gone to his own cabin, Billie had decided to stay with us, and now we were just sort of sitting around.
"……Sandshrew, Taper, and Magnemite."
She blinked. "…Huh!? But…those aren't your strongest!"
"……They're the only ones I have."
"Ash……"
I looked up.
"What?"
"………You're going to need more than luck to win."
"……I know that."
"……Do you think you can win?"
I don't know if want to win……Not until I can get out of Team Rocket.
I sighed. "I don't know…It wouldn't be that bad if I lost though…"
She sat up. "What!? What are you talking about!?"
I looked away. She wouldn't understand.
"Ash! We're talking about the Pokémon League Championship here! You can't just not care!"
"……I don't have to care if I don't want to……The truth is, I'm…kinda hoping I'll lose."
"What!!!? Ash, have you gone mad!? What about your dream??"
"………Misty……If I win………then I won't have won…for myself…or Pallet…or anyone…that matters………I'll have won for Team Rocket………and I don't want to do that…………Maybe I…Maybe I should forfeit."
Misty stood up and put her hands on her hips.
"Ash Ketchum, you are going to battle Richie, and you are going to fight your hardest…It's already taken you this long to get back here. You're going to fight for yourself, okay? That's all that matters. Forget about Team Rocket. They're not important. You hear me?"
I sighed.
I hear you Misty……but how can I just forget about Team Rocket? After………
"Ash, did you hear me?"
"……Yes."
"Are you going to do your best, or what?"
…Or what.
"…I'll try."
* * *
I wish I at least had Pikachu with me…
"We're counting on you, twerp, so you'd better win!" Jessie said.
"Yeah! The reputation of Team Rocket lies on your shoulders!" Meowth added.
"Win, win, win!" James said enthusiastically.
…I wish these guys would leave me alone.
Billie put her hand on my shoulder.
"Don't worry about them, Ash. They don't know what they're talking about."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, and you do?"
"…I'm not making any promises." She smiled.
I couldn't help but smile back.
"…Thanks."
"No prob. Just do what you think is right."
That's not a bad idea.
"I…I think I'll do that…"
Brock looked at us thoughtfully. "Are you guys done yet? Ash has a match to get to."
I looked at him. "Yeah…I'm ready."
"Good. Your fans are expecting you to show up this time. They've already waited long enough."
"Heh…You've…got a point there."