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Misty's Awakening
Part 4
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The Nurse pushed Misty through a hallway, past many other rooms, on their way to the Therapy Center. Misty looked around at the doorways, and, finding she could get a peek inside, she observed the people within. She watched as she was quickly pushed by them— some patients were young like she was, while others looked much older. None of them looked happy.

The antiseptic smell was far more intense out here than it had been in Misty's room. There were Nurses and Doctors alike, bustling by Misty, some with trays and things in hand, and some others with patients with them. She even saw a couple of patients being wheeled in on stretchers, looking grave and unmoving. Misty had been like them, once.

They reached the elevator (Misty recognized that it was an elevator, but it took her a moment to remember), and Misty was pushed inside. The Nurse pressed a button, the door closed, and Misty could feel herself moving steadily downward.

'Funny...I can hardly remember actually riding in one of these. . .' She watched the floor buttons periodically light up and fade again. She hadn't realized that her room had been that many floors up.

There was a ding, and as soon as the door opened, Misty was taken across another hallway and into a room with a blue door.

Misty's chair was guided through the doorway and into a large room. Misty looked around.

Most of the floor was covered in pale blue padding, as well as some of the walls, and there was equipment all about the room. There were bars that stuck from the ground like parallel balance beams, and several weight benches by the wall. There were also some smaller dumbbells in the corner. There was other gear, too, and Misty also noticed a couple of doors on the east wall.

Misty's Doctor was waiting near the middle of the room next to a lady that Misty didn't recognize. He waved, looking cheerful as usual.

"Are you ready to start, Misty?" he asked as the Nurse wheeled her closer.

Doubt nagged at her. "I. . . I don't know. Do I really have a choice?"

The Doctor smiled. "Well, if you really don't want to, I guess you don't have to. We can't force you, after all."

Misty *didn't* want to, but then, she kept thinking of how Ash had convinced her that it was for her own good. She would take his advice, she would do that for him.

"I'll do it."

"Good!" The Doctor gestured to the lady standing by him. "This is Dr. Johnson, and she's your therapist. I'm not sure what you'll start out doing, but she'll know how to best help you."

"Okay..."

"Hello, Misty," Dr. Johnson said cordially. She was a small, thin lady with blonde hair barely to her shoulders. "So, shall we get started?"

"Go right on ahead," Misty's Doctor said. "See you later."

The Doctor and Nurse left the room.


* * * *

Misty had been expecting the therapist to make her try to get up and walk right away, but that wasn't at all the case. Instead, she took Misty to one of the rooms on the eat wall.

Inside, Misty was pushed up to a small desk.

"We're going to start out with a fairly simple and un-aerobic today," Dr. Johnson stated. She placed a pencil and a piece of paper down on the desk. "You're going to start with your hand coordination."

'Hand coordination?' Misty thought. 'Well, I guess I've got to start somewhere.'

"OK, then, shall we? Will you write for me on that paper the whole alphabet, lower and upper cases? Take all the time you need."

Misty found herself thinking for a moment. Yes, she still knew the alphabet, but it felt as if her mind had stuck it back somewhere in a pile of useless things, like she wouldn't need it anymore.

It did come to her, though, flying back like a boomerang. She positioned her pencil in her hand, and attempted tp write the letters down on the paper.

It didn't come as easily as she had anticipated. Her fingers were like stubs on her shaky hand, and she felt like she was merely judging where on the paper her letters would end up. Mostly, she missed the lines, and she knew that this was about the poorest penmanship she'd ever written in. At least she could remember all the letters, though— in order, too.

Finally, several minutes later, she finished her task. Dr. Johnson nodded, barely inspecting her work, and then directed her to do it again with her non-dominant hand.

Misty wanted to complain, but figured that the sooner she did it, the sooner she'd see Ash again.


* * * *


About an hour later, Misty was taken from the Therapy Center and to another room— a bathroom. The Nurse told her that Misty was going to get a bath before returning to her room.

After Misty had been undressed, a Nurse immersed her into a tub of pleasantly warm water. Misty didn't exactly approve of the idea of someone else helping her bathe, but it felt so good to be clean, she found that she hardly cared.

The water seemed to cleanse her, feeling as if to wash away the dirt of nearly three years from her body, making Misty feel new and invigorated. She loved the smell of the lavender shampoo in her hair, and the silky soap bubbles that floated against her skin. She'd forgotten how good a bath could feel.

Afterwards, she was dried off in a huge, fluffy white towel and put in fresh clothes. She was then taken back to her room, where she found that her sheets had been changed.

It all felt very good and refreshing. But, as soon as she was placed in her bed again, she remembered Ash automatically. She could think of nothing else, staring at the door of her empty room.

Minutes later, Misty found herself sitting in bed, picking idly at the food that a Nurse had just brought, when the door opened again.

She jolted upright, and stared at the door again, very intently.

"Oh! Dear, it's so wonderful to see you!"

Ms. Ketchem.

Misty relaxed. "Oh, hello, Ms. Ketchem." She wanted to ask right off where Ash was, but decided that would be a bit rude.

The small brunette lady rushed over to Misty. "Well, haven't you changed! I can't believe it's been all these years!" She gave Misty a hug.

"Thanks..."

Ash's mom drew back, and looked at Misty's face. "Misty, sweetie, you look a little sad. Ash was just saying how much better you were feeling! Well, I do understand. Hospitals aren't all that fun, now are they?"

Misty nodded. "Yeah, well, I'm just tired. I just had therapy and stuff." She didn't want to act disappointed, but she'd been aching to talk to Ash.

"Oh, yes. It's just been _such_ a long time. I'm afraid I've been so wrapped up in things that I haven't had time at all lately to see you. But oh, since I saw you last, you've grown to be a very pretty girl! I should have come more often."

Pretty? Misty didn't even know what she looked like anymore. She wondered. . .

"Well, anyway— I've got to be on my way now. I'm meeting Professor Oak for a— er, I mean, I need to iron my, um, couch....yeah...." She smiled nervously and waved goodbye to Misty.

Ms. Ketchem rose and went to the door, but before leaving, she added, "And Ash is coming in a few minutes, by the way. Toodles!" She left.

Misty sighed. She really did wonder how different she looked now, but she didn't see a single mirror in the room. It was a strange feeling, not knowing what she looked like. Her own image of her old self in her head was even vague. All she really knew now was that her hair was still damp and her hands ached.

A few minutes passed by. Which, as she lay down a little, reminded Misty that she didn't even know what day it was, or even for sure what month. With time's passage, exactly how much had the world outside of this room changed?

"Hey, Misty."

Ash had entered. Misty shot up, and smiled at her friend.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Oh, just thinking."

Ash looked at her knowingly, but also as ie he wished she'd let him in on her thoughts, but didn't mention it.

"Well, anyway, I brought you something."

"You...did?" She hadn't noticed that he had something behind his back.

"Yes— here. I thought It'd make you feel better."

He held out to her a backpack, bright red, with one strap and several things inside of it. Misty looked at it for several moments, and then recognized it as her own.

"My...my backpack!" Misty cried joyfully.

"Yeah... it was at the Cerulean Gym. I went there today to get it, because I thought you might enjoy having it again."

Misty's eyes were sparkling. She took the bag from Ash, and she ran her fingers over it slowly. "I remember it...I wore it almost everywhere I went! It was always over my shoulder..."

"Go ahead and open it," Ash suggested.

Misty undid the top and pulled the backpack open. She mindfully unloaded it's contents onto her bed.

There were many things inside. Most of them, Misty realized, were just old junk. There was some paper, a notebook, a candy bar, candy wrappers, a little cash, and a brush among other things. But what really interested Misty were the red and white balls that rolled out of the bag and into her lap.

It hardly took Misty any time to know what they were. "My Pokemon!!"

Ash was smiling.

"They're here! I can't believe it! And they're really mine, too!" She felt a surge of happiness go through her frame, and she hugged the balls to her. "Thank you, Ash! You're the sweetest!"

"You're welcome."

"I wish I could open them right now!"

"I know. But this hospital really disapproves of people letting their Pokemon out while inside, especially around patients. I don't know why, but I was lucky I could convince them to let me bring Pikachu in—" He stopped dead.

"Ash?"

He was holding his breath. "It's...nothing. Nevermind."

Misty was growing suspicious. "Ash, what happened to Pikachu? You never told me before."

"Just don't worry about him, Misty."

"But Ash," she persisted, "you _have_ to tell me!"

"I... I don't know... if I..." He wasn't looking at her anymore.

"Come on, Ash! Maybe you can sneak him in here, because I'd love to see him! Can I? Please?"

Ash looked up at her, tears in his eyes. "No, you can't. He's gone, Misty."

It was Misty's turn to be breathless.

"Gone?"

Ash wasn't moving. "Yes...he's gone."

Misty saw more tears of pain and anguish slide from his eyes, and he let out a sob. Misty, regretting her insistence, pulled him to her like a hurt child.

"Ash, I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I didn't know..." She held onto him, confused, and her mind went over all the things that could have happened to Pikachu during the years she had been asleep.



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...To Be Continued...