Chapter 3
*At Professor Oak's lab, 3 days later*
Misty, Tracey, Professor Oak, and Mrs. Ketchum were sitting down to a huge lunch cooked by Mr. Mime. All were glad to take a quick break from tending to the injured Pokemon, as they had been working day and night since the oil spill. All were tired, but Misty had been especially quiet during lunch. The other three found their eyes straying to Misty as she sat silently, pushing the food around on her plate.
"Are you all right, Misty?" Professor Oak finally asked, breaking the silence. "You've been very quiet."
"I'm fine, Professor. I guess I'm just tired." Misty replied absently.
"Maybe you should lie down for a while. You look a quite pale. Go on, Misty, we can manage for a couple of hours," the Professor said. He looked a little worried. The last thing they needed at the lab was for someone to collapse from exhaustion.
Mrs. Ketchum looked at Misty carefully. Something was wrong. She just knew it. Call it a woman's intuition, motherly insight, whatever, but she just knew something else besides being tired was wrong with Misty. Deliah could see it in her eyes. The young girl had been like a daughter to her when Ash and his friends came to Pallet for visits. This was not the Misty she knew. And unless she was dead wrong, she knew just what was the matter with her. She had seen it ever since the first time she met Misty.
*Meanwhile, in Mahogany Town*
"I can't believe I lost!"
"Ash, calm down! It's not that bad! You can always challenge Pryce again, like you did to me, remember?"
"No, I can't, Brock! I can't do it! I just can't do it without -" Ash broke off in the middle of his sentence and looked away quickly. "Come on. I need to get Cyndaquil to the Pokemon Center. He put up a really hard battle against those ice types."
Brock grinned to himself. He knew darn well what Ash was going to say. And he wasn't about to let this opportunity pass by. Brock may seem to the outside observer to be just a tag-along or a big brother there to break up fights, but during Brock's quiet times, he was always watching, listening, and thinking. "You can't do it without what, Ash?" he asked, sounding strangely gentle.
"Nothing. It's nothing. Forget I said anything. I'll try again later." Ash muttered, shoving the brim of his hat low over his eyes. He walked faster.
A small "Pikapi?" [Ash?] came from Ash's arms, where the small yellow Pokemon was being carried to the Pokemon center. The black eyes looked nervously into Ash's, and then over to Brock. Even though he was exhausted from battling at the gym, Pikachu could see that his best friend was very upset. "Pikapichu chu pikapika pi. Pichukapi pi ka kachu." [I'm sorry... My attacks couldn't work against the Piloswine. Please don't be mad.]
Ash looked down at Pikachu. Even in his dark mood, he managed to smile at his loyal Pokemon and say, "Don't worry, Pikachu. It wasn't your fault. You put up a great battle and tried your best. That's all I can ask, so how could I be mad at you?"
"It's not 'nothing', Ash. If it was nothing, it wouldn't be bothering you this much. You've never let anything affect your battling. Come on, you'll feel better if you talk about it," Brock persuaded him. A long pause followed. Finally, Brock decided to come right out and say it. "It's Misty, isn't it?"
Ash stopped in his tracks and slowly turned to face Brock. His face had turned dead white, and there was something unreadable in his large brown eyes - pain? fear? longing? "No - it's just - I - uh - um... Okay! I miss her! Now let's go! Are you coming or not??"
'Well, finally! That's a start at least. Ash has got to talk about this, even if I have to drag it out of him,' Brock thought as they walked together in silence, Ash's stony, Brock's thoughtful. 'It's obvious that he loves Misty and he's getting so torn up inside about it. I know she loves him too. She actually came right out and told me so before she left. I've just got to get it out of him!' Brock looked up in surprise and realized that he was standing on the steps of the Pokemon Center. Ash was already in the doorway, and turned around to look at him.
"Well, come on Brock, let's put our Pokemon in and get a couple of rooms," Ash said, with a definite air of false cheerfulness in his tone.
Brock sighed and followed Ash inside the Pokemon Center. Maybe a good meal would help him think and also improve Ash's mood.
*At Professor Oak's lab, 3 days later*
Misty, Tracey, Professor Oak, and Mrs. Ketchum were sitting down to a huge lunch cooked by Mr. Mime. All were glad to take a quick break from tending to the injured Pokemon, as they had been working day and night since the oil spill. All were tired, but Misty had been especially quiet during lunch. The other three found their eyes straying to Misty as she sat silently, pushing the food around on her plate.
"Are you all right, Misty?" Professor Oak finally asked, breaking the silence. "You've been very quiet."
"I'm fine, Professor. I guess I'm just tired." Misty replied absently.
"Maybe you should lie down for a while. You look a quite pale. Go on, Misty, we can manage for a couple of hours," the Professor said. He looked a little worried. The last thing they needed at the lab was for someone to collapse from exhaustion.
Mrs. Ketchum looked at Misty carefully. Something was wrong. She just knew it. Call it a woman's intuition, motherly insight, whatever, but she just knew something else besides being tired was wrong with Misty. Deliah could see it in her eyes. The young girl had been like a daughter to her when Ash and his friends came to Pallet for visits. This was not the Misty she knew. And unless she was dead wrong, she knew just what was the matter with her. She had seen it ever since the first time she met Misty.
*Meanwhile, in Mahogany Town*
"I can't believe I lost!"
"Ash, calm down! It's not that bad! You can always challenge Pryce again, like you did to me, remember?"
"No, I can't, Brock! I can't do it! I just can't do it without -" Ash broke off in the middle of his sentence and looked away quickly. "Come on. I need to get Cyndaquil to the Pokemon Center. He put up a really hard battle against those ice types."
Brock grinned to himself. He knew darn well what Ash was going to say. And he wasn't about to let this opportunity pass by. Brock may seem to the outside observer to be just a tag-along or a big brother there to break up fights, but during Brock's quiet times, he was always watching, listening, and thinking. "You can't do it without what, Ash?" he asked, sounding strangely gentle.
"Nothing. It's nothing. Forget I said anything. I'll try again later." Ash muttered, shoving the brim of his hat low over his eyes. He walked faster.
A small "Pikapi?" [Ash?] came from Ash's arms, where the small yellow Pokemon was being carried to the Pokemon center. The black eyes looked nervously into Ash's, and then over to Brock. Even though he was exhausted from battling at the gym, Pikachu could see that his best friend was very upset. "Pikapichu chu pikapika pi. Pichukapi pi ka kachu." [I'm sorry... My attacks couldn't work against the Piloswine. Please don't be mad.]
Ash looked down at Pikachu. Even in his dark mood, he managed to smile at his loyal Pokemon and say, "Don't worry, Pikachu. It wasn't your fault. You put up a great battle and tried your best. That's all I can ask, so how could I be mad at you?"
"It's not 'nothing', Ash. If it was nothing, it wouldn't be bothering you this much. You've never let anything affect your battling. Come on, you'll feel better if you talk about it," Brock persuaded him. A long pause followed. Finally, Brock decided to come right out and say it. "It's Misty, isn't it?"
Ash stopped in his tracks and slowly turned to face Brock. His face had turned dead white, and there was something unreadable in his large brown eyes - pain? fear? longing? "No - it's just - I - uh - um... Okay! I miss her! Now let's go! Are you coming or not??"
'Well, finally! That's a start at least. Ash has got to talk about this, even if I have to drag it out of him,' Brock thought as they walked together in silence, Ash's stony, Brock's thoughtful. 'It's obvious that he loves Misty and he's getting so torn up inside about it. I know she loves him too. She actually came right out and told me so before she left. I've just got to get it out of him!' Brock looked up in surprise and realized that he was standing on the steps of the Pokemon Center. Ash was already in the doorway, and turned around to look at him.
"Well, come on Brock, let's put our Pokemon in and get a couple of rooms," Ash said, with a definite air of false cheerfulness in his tone.
Brock sighed and followed Ash inside the Pokemon Center. Maybe a good meal would help him think and also improve Ash's mood.