Disclaimer: Pokémon and its characters are not mine, but this story is.
A/N: Yay, keep those reviews coming in! :-) I decided to begin with another semi-fluffy part before resuming… other… events. BTW, just letting you know that this chapter title isn't quite right, but it's the best I can think of.
Ch. 4 – The Earth Shrine
Misty's eyes slowly fluttered open. Noticing that her body was slightly stiff, she was getting ready to stretch a bit when she realized that something wasn't quite right.
She became aware of a comforting warmth around her, and a rhythmic breathing that was much closer than what she was used to.
Startled, she cleared her mind a bit and began paying more attention to her surroundings. She gulped when she recognized the fabric of Ash's shirt. It was mere millimetres away from her face. Actually, she was leaning on it…!
Blood rushed to her face and her heart started hammering like mad. She felt completely giddy and her mind was screaming an entire train of things.
'Okay, okay, calm down…' she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, repeating the process until she didn't feel like running around in circles and screaming her head off anymore.
'First of all, what happened?' She asked herself and thought back, trying to remember. She recalled being beyond panic over the whole incident about Ash and Togepi going over the cliff… A lump formed in her throat at the mere thought of that… And then she remembered finding Ash perfectly safe; they returned to their room and talked for a while; she couldn't control herself and started crying; Ash reassured her; and then…
Misty frowned. And then what happened? She couldn't remember. 'I probably fell asleep then, right on… top…… of……… him………………' Her mind slowed to a screeching halt. 'Oh crap, WHAT THE HECK HAVE I DONE?!!'
But then, she found herself feeling excited. Hey, he stayed here with me! Does he like being with me? However, she realized something that dimmed her hopes a little. 'Oh…' She had pinned Ash against the end of the couch, with no any way of getting up without disturbing her. Maybe he just didn't want to wake me…
She sighed. 'How I wish she can know for sure…'
Something caught her eye. The clock on the bedside table read 4:30. 'Wow, what woke me up at this hour?'
Misty decided to get some more shuteye. And although she enjoyed being curled up next to (on) Ash, her legs felt cramped so she finally got around to doing a bit of stretching and let her legs down onto the floor. Not even remembering that beds existed, she just closed her eyes, listened to Ash's faint but soothing heartbeat and let it lull her to sleep.
* * * * *
Ash yawned and opened his eyes. Looking down, he saw Misty, still sleeping serenely. He tried his best to get out without disturbing her. It wasn't too difficult, since she was further away than she was the night before. 'Or was that part all a dream?'
He glanced at the clock. Almost 6:30. He put Misty's sleeping body in a comfortable position and went off to find a blanket. Returning with one, he covered her with it.
Yawning again, he instinctively homed in on the refrigerator, looking for food. As he passed the wastebasket, the crumpled grocery bags inside the bin caught his eye. Ash felt like he had been his by a thunderbolt. 'BROCK!!!' He groaned inwardly, knowing that he and Misty would probably become victims of Brock's teasing for a whole week, at the very least.
He lost his appetite (A/N: Is that possible? :-) ) and went through his bag, looking for dry clothes. The set he was wearing before had begun to smell musty since he didn't hang it out properly. He changed in the bathroom and closed the door slightly too loudly when he cam out.
"Ash?" Misty's voice rang out, sounding like she was still half-asleep.
'Whoops, I shouldn't have made such a noise…'
Ash went back to where Misty was. "Morning!" he said cheerfully, trying to hide his nervousness. 'Does she know what happened?'
Misty, who was sitting up then, rubbed her eyes and glanced at her backpack where Togepi was.
Ash sat down next to her and put his arm around her on impulse. "Um… I hope you're not still upset about the… incident…"
'Boy, he seems to be doing that quite a lot now. Not that I'm complaining…' she silently giggled to herself. "Well, you can't expect me to get over something like that within a day…"
"Oh, sorry. Stupid me…" Ash suddenly became very self-conscious and withdrew his arm.
"Anyway, thanks for… everything…" Misty added quietly, giving a sincere smile.
"Don't mention it. That's what friends are for…" He immediately bit his tongue. 'Stupidstupidstupid!' he kicked himself mentally.
Misty felt a wave of disappointment, but didn't show it. "By the way, where are Brock and Pikachu?"
Ash's head snapped up. "Ohmygod, I forgot all about Pikachu!" With that, he dashed out the door.
Misty stared after him quizzically. What could possibly make him forget about his very best friend in the whole world? 'Maybe…' She smiled a silly smile to herself, feeling her hope rising again.
She quickly changed, grabbed her backpack and the keys and ran after him. "Ash, wait up!"
Outside, Misty found Ash doubled over with laughter. When she saw what he was laughing at, she couldn't help but join in.
Brock was lying on a couch with one arm and one leg hanging loosely. His head was to one side, and a large wet spot under his open mouth was plainly visible.
"Oh Nurse Joy, you're the greatest person in the whole wide world…" he mumbled in his sleep, barely audible. With that, he rolled over and fell right on top of Pikachu, who was curled up in a ball on the floor.
"Pika-CHU!!!!!!!" The yellow Pokémon automatically released a thundershock.
"Ow…" Brock lay on the floor, smouldering. Pikachu was rubbing the back of his head, apologising.
"That's what you get for stealing my Pokémon, Brocko!" Ash grinned and walked over, with Misty trailing behind.
Brock feigned anger and turn his back to them, folding his arms. Grinning, he muttered in a low voice but made sure it was loud enough for them to hear, "I have the decency to give you two some privacy, and you accuse me of stealing!"
Ash and Misty coloured deeply and didn't dare to look at each other. Pikachu laughed at them, earning a glare from Ash which was ignored.
"H-hey, what about getting some grub? I'm starving!" Ash tried to change the subject.
"Typical, always thinking of food," Misty failed badly at using her usual insulting tone.
This just made Brock grin even wider. "K, let's go back to the room and I'll cook something!" he said cheerfully.
"Wait, my Snorlax took a rough beating yesterday. I'd better go see Nurse Joy. You two go ahead, I'll catch up." Ash hurried off to the medical part of the Centre to look for Nurse Joy, who wasn't at her desk.
He found her coming out of the Intensive Care Unit, looking very tired. Following her was the trainer he had battled. He was wearing bandages in several areas. Nurse Joy was telling him off for going after the Rhydon.
Brown-Hair's eyes widened when he saw Ash. "What do you want?
Ash handed a Pokéball to Nurse Joy. "My Snorlax took quite a beating when I used it to fight the same Rhydon. Could you look at it, please?" he said politely.
Brown-Hair and Nurse Joy stared at him in disbelief.
"What about the rest of your Pokémon? And yourself? I don't think you'd be able to keep the Rhydon at bay with only a Snorlax," Nurse Joy was sceptical.
"You? Fight the Steel Rhydon? That's a good one!" Brown-Hair snorted.
Ash ignored the insult and turned to Nurse Joy. "Yes, I realized that the Rhydon was too powerful after I saw Snorlax get defeated, so I used my superior brain to outsmart it."
Nurse Joy took the Pokéball. "Okay, I'll do what I can. I'm not interested in the exact details right now. This trainer kept me up all night… He's extremely lucky the Centre showed up when it did." She walked into the examination room.
"By the way, I didn't quite get your name," Ash said to Brown-Hair.
"What, not even a handshake to offer?"
Ash held up his bandaged hand. "Fighting tough Pokémon with your own bare hands isn't very easy." He figured he wasn't quite lying, since what he said was true, and he didn't say that's how he got injured.
"Go away, I need my rest."
Ash scowled and felt an insane urge to beat some manners into him. He got ready to lunge when…
"Chansey!" Nurse Joy's assistant came along and tugged Brown-Hair's sleeve, telling him to follow her. Brown-Hair smirked and walked next to Chansey, leaving Ash to fume.
Annoyed, he went back to room, but all murderous thoughts left him as soon as he took one whiff of the delicious aromas coming from the kitchen.
"Wow Brock, that smells great! What'd you make this time?" He asked, sitting down opposite Misty at the table, forgetting the tense atmosphere between them earlier.
"Right on time, Ash! Here's Brock's Brilliant Broth. And that's just for starters!"
* * * * *
"I'm stuffed…" Ash moaned, lying on the table.
Brock had gotten bored waiting for Ash to finish his breakfast and had gone exploring the mountain.
"Having three servings of what you took can't be too healthy," Misty reprimanded him. Ash merely groaned in reply.
Misty sighed and told Ash to do his own washing up when he was able to move. She decided to go through the brochure which Ash had neglected. Pikachu watched TV. After a while, Ash returned to his normal, active self and wanted to do some training.
"I don't know, Ash, this place is a bit too dangerous for my taste…" Misty said worriedly.
He shrugged. "Suit yourself. C'mon, Pikachu!" Pikachu gladly obliged.
As the two of them walked out the door, Misty glanced in their direction. 'I think I'd better follow him to make sure he doesn't do something stupid again!' "Wait, I'm following you!"
Ash went to see how Snorlax was doing.
"Your Snorlax didn't suffer any serious injuries. You can take him back now." Nurse Joy smiled. Dark rings can be seen under her eyes.
"Thanks," Ash said, taking the Pokéball. "By the way, how's that brown-haired trainer's Pokémon?"
"Come on Ash, let Nurse Joy rest," Misty tugged him, irritated.
"It's okay," Nurse Joy told them. "Well, all his Pokémon are in very bad shape. The Machamp's the worst. All his arms are broken." She shook her head. "If people continue to be reckless, we may have to find a way to get rid of that Rhydon, or close this place to the public…"
"Pika…!" Pikachu was visibly frightened.
"Don't worry, I won't do anything stupid." Ash reassured the yellow rodent.
Nurse Joy smiled. "That's a wise thing to say. Anyway, are you SURE you fought the Steel Rhydon?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, he decided to use Taurosfighting techniques…" Misty said, earning a gasp from Nurse Joy.
"Hey, I had everything planned out. I knew that at the velockiddy it was travelling, it would cause the ceiling to collapse on it." Ash bragged. Misty, Pikachu and Nurse Joy sweat-dropped.
"That's velo-CITY, Mr. My-Vocabulary-Is-Way-Smaller-Than-My-Big-Head." Misty dragged him away, embarrassed.
Nurse Joy laughed. "You two be careful, now!" She then promptly fell asleep.
* * * * *
A Meowth hot-air balloon hovered high above.
"Hey, the tweirps just went inside that cave," Meowth reported, watching through his binoculars.
"Drat, we can't execute our plan if they're inside!" Jessie said.
Just then, the screen of their comm-unit (A/N: Whadevayacallit) turned on. A sinister face showed on it. "How's your mission to capture Pikachu?"
"Uh… very good sir. We are just about to execute our greatest plan yet!" James lied nervously. "By the way sir, may I have a well-deserved vacation when we get Pikachu? I thought I just saw a Pokémon Centre vanish into thin air!"
Jessie and Meowth were keeping out of the way of the comm-unit. Their eyes were wide with terror at what James just said.
However, Giovanni's eyes lit up. "So, you're at the Warped Mountain… Wait, where are your bumbling partners?"
"Right here, sir!" They popped out of their hiding place.
"Now, listen carefully. I want you to suspend your hunt for Pikachu, for now. There are bigger fish to fry. I want you to get me the Ancient Steelix…"
"But sir, isn't that something out of a children's fairy tale?" James asked. Meowth discreetly reached over and gave him a swipe with his claw. "Ow!"
Giovanni's face loomed nearer to the screen menacingly. "Do you question my orders?"
"No sir! Not at all!" The three of them shook their heads furiously.
"Good. Now, go to the nearest Rocket base in the forest. There's some equipment I want you to pick up…"
* * * * *
"…and did you know that there is a list of Pokémon you are allowed to capture? And also, did you know that…"
Ash plugged his ears but it was futile. Misty's lecturing voice still reached him.
"Hey look at that!" he saw something which gave him the chance to try distracting her.
"Huh, what are they doing?" Misty asked, puzzled.
In the cavern, different types of Digletts and Dugtrios were popping up and down. Most were normal, but some had rock skin and others had steel.
"Cool, an arcade!" Ash said stupidly.
"Dig!"
"Trio!"
"Pikapi?" Pikachu conversed with the others for a while and turned to Ash. "Pikachu, pikapika, pi, pika!"
"Huh? They want to play?"
Pikachu nodded.
"Okay, target practice! Low-powered thundershock!"
Sparks flew from Pikachu's cheeks and soon, he was shooting beams of lighting at the mole Pokémon, who were pretty good at dodging.
"I think I'll let my Staryu join in!" Misty reached for her Pokéball.
"Wait! Water will hurt them badly!"
"Aw…" Misty pretended to pout.
After a while, they waved goodbye to the Digletts and Dugtrios and went on their way. Ash fought some wild Pokémon, but didn't meet any that he considered worth catching. They also met a few other trainers. Even Misty joined in. The two of them had just won a joint battle and were dancing around when an all-too-familiar bellow got their attention.
"Pi!" Pikachu didn't look too calm just then.
"Oh no…" Misty instinctively held Togepi tightly.
"RUN!!!!" Ash picked up Pikachu, set him on his shoulder, grabbed Misty's hand and sped away. The ground shook as Rhydon's feet pounded it in the pursuit.
"Ash look out! DEAD END!!!" Misty screamed, trying to pull him back.
"Huh? WAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Ash braced himself for impact. He hit the wall and…
…tumbled right through it, dragging Misty along and sending Pikachu rolling off his shoulder.
"Wha?" Ash rubbed his head, dizzy. He looked up and saw a huge man, dressed in only a loincloth.
"Greetings, Chosen One. I've been expecting you."
* * * * *
A/N: What is Giovanni up to? Did I even need to ask that? Okay, what mission is in store for Ash this time? What terrible things have happened to Brock? Find out in… *drumroll* Chapter five! *dodges flying rotten eggs and tomatoes* Geez, can't I be melodramatic if I want to? *Sigh* this chapter didn't quite turn out as well as I had hoped. Anyway, please remember to click that review button!