Ash walks back to his new home for lunch later that afternoon. Pallet
was a nice and friendly town. But what was the chance of Katherine being in
one of the souls of these people? He told his story to Pikachu. About his
former life as an electric rat himself. Pikachu didn't seem to believe him.
But, it tried to tell him something else. Ash couldn't understand that
language anymore. There was a tone of sympathy in its voice, though. One
that made you think he had done something drastic. He walks through the
door to the sound of sobbing. He goes into the kitchen to see his mother
with her head in her hands. She was the one who was crying. Ash takes off
his hat and sits down next to her by the table.
"What's the matter, Mom?" Ash asks.
She continues to cry.
"I just want to know why, Ash." She finally says. "Was it something I did? Are you alright?"
What was she talking about? Ash thought. "What do you mean: Am I alright?"
"I…I" She sniffles. "I was cleaning your room earlier t-today. I…I" This must have been really hard for her. "I found something under y-your bed."
"What? What did you find?" Ash leans forward in concern. She must think he is stupid. But hey, what could be worse then a dirty pair of boxers?
His mother slowly puts an object on the table but keeps it covered with her hand. Pikachu hops across the table's surface and pries her fingers off the item. Sitting on the table was a knife. A pocket-sized, doubled-edged knife. Ash's jaw dropped. He automatically put his hand over his chest. The knife…had dried blood on its tips. Either he had committed murder, or just something else!
"Mother, I…" Ash chokes.
"Please, tell me, was it something I said?" His mother put her hand on his shoulder.
"I don't remember anything. I can't tell you why that was in my room." Ash replies. "I don't remember doing a thing." With that he picked up the knife to examine it. "I just…don't understand it. Don't understand it at all."
"I have a strange feeling, dear." His mother went on. "That this may be about her."
"Who's her?" Ash fingers the blade.
His mother made a painful sigh. "I thought this was over, dear. But I also knew that you and Misty had something special. Why do you pretend to forget her name all the time?"
"Misty…" Ash hummed and racked his old memory for a piece of information on her. Why was his memory so blank? When his soul was transferred, all happenings and special events should have remained in his mind. But then again; why couldn't he remember how he died, and about the knife. He slowly sat up from the table and took the knife with him. He walked to his room and sat on his bed after putting the knife in his nightstand drawer. "Misty…" He says to himself once more.
"Chu! Chu!" Pikachu called.
Ash looked over at his buddy who held a photo graph.
"Pikachu Pi." It hands it to Ash.
On the photo was a girl with flaming orange hair and stunning, blue-green eyes. She wore shorts, a yellow tank top, and red suspenders. Her pose was a wink with a peace sign. She was beautiful and looked to be actually quite witty.
"Pikachu Pi." Pikachu repeated.
Ash finally got the point. "Misty." He ran is finger over the picture. "This is Misty."
"Pika." Pikachu agrees.
"I…almost remember her." Ash's memory had finally kicked in. "It's still a little blurry, but she's coming back to me. Misty Water--…something." At that moment—when those words left his lips—he thought of Katherine. "She was a water Pokemon. If she is Misty; Misty Waterflower. She might be the one I'm looking for. She might be the one I have to bring back to me. My Katherine, my love." He had a very strange intuition about it. He felt her…he felt the same sensation he usually has, whenever she was around. Her wonderful smile.
"Cha…" Pikachu sighs happily.
Ash suddenly perks up. "I need to find her! I need to find Katherine; I mean Misty. Pikachu, will you come with me?"
"Chu." It nods.
"Thank you! Thank you so much, Pikachu!" Ash gives it a hug.
"Pikachu." It points to his nightstand drawer, a signal towards the knife.
"That is another thing I'd like to know as well, Pikachu." Ash goes to reach for the handle to the drawer when a slight memory returned again. It stopped him like lightning and he instinctively put his hand up to his chest.
"Cha…" Pikachu repeated. This time, his voice was sad and full of pity and fear.
Ash got the hint. He had felt it too, an odd stitch in his side. An omen of foreboding. He slowly takes off his blue outer shirt and sets it aside on his bed. He then took off this black t-shirt as well. He shivers a bit and then walks to his mirror. Looking at his reflection was like watching a movie. On his chest was a huge scar. It was about three to four inches long with jagged tracks. He looked back at the drawer which concealed the knife. When he gazed back at his reflection, he saw a different scene. A scene that he thought could only live in his lost reminiscences. The cut seemed to be open once more, with blood running down his chest. He put his hand to the cut and thought it felt wet, but once he looked down at his actual self, he was healthy. Ash stared at himself in the mirror once more and saw the wound festering. His reflected twin's face scrunched up in agony as it threw a knife to the floor from behind its back.
"Oh, dear Lord!" Ash staggered back with a repulsed surprise. He stopped when his foot fell on something cold and hard. He looked down at the floor to see the knife, right were the mirror boy had dropped it. "This…this—is uncanny!" Ash gazes into the mirror once more, shivering. The boy was now holding a ripped piece of paper. Wait, it was a photograph. It turned the picture around so Ash could see the faces. One half had him, the other half had Misty. The mirror boy put the picture together and then pulled the two pieces apart over and over. Ash couldn't take it anymore. He slammed his closet door in which the mirror hung. He then sank to the floor and cried. He took his hands away from his eyes to see two fragments on the floor. One of him, and one of Misty. "This is so supernatural. An odd phenomenon. How could this be happening?" He picks up the ripped photo and puts them together again.
Ash nods to himself and sits up. He redresses and grabs his backpack. On his desk he wrote a note to his mother saying he would be gone on a journey. He didn't know how long it would take, and he was sorry for leaving on such short notice. 'But I need to find her' Was his last sentence before putting down the pen. He turned to Pikachu who grinned with determination to help out his trainer. They then left, heading down the road and out of Pallet.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Hey you!" Came a kid's shout.
Misty turned to see a boy a little younger then herself. He held a Poke' Ball in his hand. "What do you want?"
"I know you!" The boy exclaims. "You're one of the Cerulean City Gym Leaders! I want my Cascade Badge! I challenge you to a battle."
"Wait…I…I don't have my Pokemon with me! I can't battle you." Misty said out of instinct.
"What do you mean you're traveling without your Pokemon!?"
"I mean just that!" Misty replied and then turned and ran.
This life was strange. She seemed to be known by everyone in town! As she continued on her walk, she got 'good-mornings' from a lot of people. Some with her name attached. She finally reached her house and slammed the door once she had entered.
"Calm down, Misty!" Came Daisy's voice. "No need to slam the frickin' door!"
"Not now Daisy!" Misty yelled back and went into her room to think.
Everybody knew she was a Gym Leader. Then she must have some Pokemon around here. What kind of Pokemon did she have though? She's seen only a few types since she had lived in Fuchsia all of her life. Misty spots a red backpack in the corner and opens it to see a canteen, six Poke' Balls, and a few other small trinkets. She takes out the six red and white balls and lets them out each one at a time. One was a Staryu, the next was a Starmie. Third was a Goldeen. Fourth; a Horsea. The fifth ball contained a Psyduck. Last one, she could feel was a different one. Something special. She let it go and out came one of her own. A Poliwag. She smiles.
"Oh, it feels so good to see one of you again." Misty sighs. It was then she noticed something else in her backpack. An egg with red and blue spots. The top expanded and out came a Togepi. "Oh my." She turns to Poliwag. "I need your help."
"Poli?" It shakes its head. It was holding something with its tail.
"Wanna hand that over to Misty, Poliwag?" Misty holds out her hand.
"Poliwag." It nods, just because it was obeying, and handed over the object.
"Ouch!" Misty sucked on her finger. The object had cut her finger as she took it. "Oh my goodness!" Misty gasps. It was a knife. A double-edged, pocket-sized knife. "Where did you get this, Poliwag?"
"Poliwag." It motions its head towards her.
"This is mine?" Misty was shocked. "How did I…" Then she remembered. Her death. "Why did I…"
Misty drops the knife and it makes a thud as it hits the carpet. She stumbles back to her bed and has a seat, staring into the wall opposite of her. Her head was so deserted. She knew she had to die, but finding out that she did it herself; was worse. She had killed herself. She had committed suicide. Why did she? Misty sighs heavily and puts her hands palm- side up on her lap. She gazes down upon them to see a scar on each wrist. A slow, and secret death. She took her fingers and placed them on her neck. On each side was another thin scar as well, just incase the other cuts didn't kill her. Such memories, swimming through her mind. Splashing loudly to get her attention. Misty pulls back the cover of her bed, expecting to see blood-stained sheets. But no red…wait, there is a faint pink where she last lied down. On her pillow case as well.
"Poliwag." She finally says. "Where did you find this?"
"Poli!" It dives under the bed and back out again.
Misty couldn't keep her hands off of her neck. "Why did Misty do this? I mean, why did I do this."
"Psy?" Came Psyduck.
"You see…I'm not really Misty, guys. I'm Katherine Taddle, and I was once a Poliwag." Misty goes on and tells her story about her previous life. Her Pokemon listen intently. "And he was everything to me." She finishes. "I need to find him. Will you help me? Please?" All her Pokemon reply in a rowdy cheer of their own cries. "Thank you…"
The door bursts open and in comes Violet. "Oh, you're here. See, that's why I requested my own room when you came back, so I could have my privacy. It's like….AH!" She screams and puts her hands on her cheeks. She rushes over to Misty's side and picks up the knife. "Don't do it Misty! I don't hate you that much!"
It took quite some time to persuade Violet that Misty wasn't going to kill herself—again. Misty had to think up a pretty good story to get her out of her hair. She still didn't tell her about her being a Poliwag before, hence her calling her and her sisters Wanda, Cleo, and Roberta. After Violet finally left the room with what she originally came in to retrieve, Misty recalled all of her Pokemon and put them into her backpack. Togepi hopped into her arms and she went out the door, heading for the next down to the south. Her sister's wouldn't miss her, she was certain of that. Her only worry was how long this search would take her…and if she would succeed.
"What's the matter, Mom?" Ash asks.
She continues to cry.
"I just want to know why, Ash." She finally says. "Was it something I did? Are you alright?"
What was she talking about? Ash thought. "What do you mean: Am I alright?"
"I…I" She sniffles. "I was cleaning your room earlier t-today. I…I" This must have been really hard for her. "I found something under y-your bed."
"What? What did you find?" Ash leans forward in concern. She must think he is stupid. But hey, what could be worse then a dirty pair of boxers?
His mother slowly puts an object on the table but keeps it covered with her hand. Pikachu hops across the table's surface and pries her fingers off the item. Sitting on the table was a knife. A pocket-sized, doubled-edged knife. Ash's jaw dropped. He automatically put his hand over his chest. The knife…had dried blood on its tips. Either he had committed murder, or just something else!
"Mother, I…" Ash chokes.
"Please, tell me, was it something I said?" His mother put her hand on his shoulder.
"I don't remember anything. I can't tell you why that was in my room." Ash replies. "I don't remember doing a thing." With that he picked up the knife to examine it. "I just…don't understand it. Don't understand it at all."
"I have a strange feeling, dear." His mother went on. "That this may be about her."
"Who's her?" Ash fingers the blade.
His mother made a painful sigh. "I thought this was over, dear. But I also knew that you and Misty had something special. Why do you pretend to forget her name all the time?"
"Misty…" Ash hummed and racked his old memory for a piece of information on her. Why was his memory so blank? When his soul was transferred, all happenings and special events should have remained in his mind. But then again; why couldn't he remember how he died, and about the knife. He slowly sat up from the table and took the knife with him. He walked to his room and sat on his bed after putting the knife in his nightstand drawer. "Misty…" He says to himself once more.
"Chu! Chu!" Pikachu called.
Ash looked over at his buddy who held a photo graph.
"Pikachu Pi." It hands it to Ash.
On the photo was a girl with flaming orange hair and stunning, blue-green eyes. She wore shorts, a yellow tank top, and red suspenders. Her pose was a wink with a peace sign. She was beautiful and looked to be actually quite witty.
"Pikachu Pi." Pikachu repeated.
Ash finally got the point. "Misty." He ran is finger over the picture. "This is Misty."
"Pika." Pikachu agrees.
"I…almost remember her." Ash's memory had finally kicked in. "It's still a little blurry, but she's coming back to me. Misty Water--…something." At that moment—when those words left his lips—he thought of Katherine. "She was a water Pokemon. If she is Misty; Misty Waterflower. She might be the one I'm looking for. She might be the one I have to bring back to me. My Katherine, my love." He had a very strange intuition about it. He felt her…he felt the same sensation he usually has, whenever she was around. Her wonderful smile.
"Cha…" Pikachu sighs happily.
Ash suddenly perks up. "I need to find her! I need to find Katherine; I mean Misty. Pikachu, will you come with me?"
"Chu." It nods.
"Thank you! Thank you so much, Pikachu!" Ash gives it a hug.
"Pikachu." It points to his nightstand drawer, a signal towards the knife.
"That is another thing I'd like to know as well, Pikachu." Ash goes to reach for the handle to the drawer when a slight memory returned again. It stopped him like lightning and he instinctively put his hand up to his chest.
"Cha…" Pikachu repeated. This time, his voice was sad and full of pity and fear.
Ash got the hint. He had felt it too, an odd stitch in his side. An omen of foreboding. He slowly takes off his blue outer shirt and sets it aside on his bed. He then took off this black t-shirt as well. He shivers a bit and then walks to his mirror. Looking at his reflection was like watching a movie. On his chest was a huge scar. It was about three to four inches long with jagged tracks. He looked back at the drawer which concealed the knife. When he gazed back at his reflection, he saw a different scene. A scene that he thought could only live in his lost reminiscences. The cut seemed to be open once more, with blood running down his chest. He put his hand to the cut and thought it felt wet, but once he looked down at his actual self, he was healthy. Ash stared at himself in the mirror once more and saw the wound festering. His reflected twin's face scrunched up in agony as it threw a knife to the floor from behind its back.
"Oh, dear Lord!" Ash staggered back with a repulsed surprise. He stopped when his foot fell on something cold and hard. He looked down at the floor to see the knife, right were the mirror boy had dropped it. "This…this—is uncanny!" Ash gazes into the mirror once more, shivering. The boy was now holding a ripped piece of paper. Wait, it was a photograph. It turned the picture around so Ash could see the faces. One half had him, the other half had Misty. The mirror boy put the picture together and then pulled the two pieces apart over and over. Ash couldn't take it anymore. He slammed his closet door in which the mirror hung. He then sank to the floor and cried. He took his hands away from his eyes to see two fragments on the floor. One of him, and one of Misty. "This is so supernatural. An odd phenomenon. How could this be happening?" He picks up the ripped photo and puts them together again.
Ash nods to himself and sits up. He redresses and grabs his backpack. On his desk he wrote a note to his mother saying he would be gone on a journey. He didn't know how long it would take, and he was sorry for leaving on such short notice. 'But I need to find her' Was his last sentence before putting down the pen. He turned to Pikachu who grinned with determination to help out his trainer. They then left, heading down the road and out of Pallet.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Hey you!" Came a kid's shout.
Misty turned to see a boy a little younger then herself. He held a Poke' Ball in his hand. "What do you want?"
"I know you!" The boy exclaims. "You're one of the Cerulean City Gym Leaders! I want my Cascade Badge! I challenge you to a battle."
"Wait…I…I don't have my Pokemon with me! I can't battle you." Misty said out of instinct.
"What do you mean you're traveling without your Pokemon!?"
"I mean just that!" Misty replied and then turned and ran.
This life was strange. She seemed to be known by everyone in town! As she continued on her walk, she got 'good-mornings' from a lot of people. Some with her name attached. She finally reached her house and slammed the door once she had entered.
"Calm down, Misty!" Came Daisy's voice. "No need to slam the frickin' door!"
"Not now Daisy!" Misty yelled back and went into her room to think.
Everybody knew she was a Gym Leader. Then she must have some Pokemon around here. What kind of Pokemon did she have though? She's seen only a few types since she had lived in Fuchsia all of her life. Misty spots a red backpack in the corner and opens it to see a canteen, six Poke' Balls, and a few other small trinkets. She takes out the six red and white balls and lets them out each one at a time. One was a Staryu, the next was a Starmie. Third was a Goldeen. Fourth; a Horsea. The fifth ball contained a Psyduck. Last one, she could feel was a different one. Something special. She let it go and out came one of her own. A Poliwag. She smiles.
"Oh, it feels so good to see one of you again." Misty sighs. It was then she noticed something else in her backpack. An egg with red and blue spots. The top expanded and out came a Togepi. "Oh my." She turns to Poliwag. "I need your help."
"Poli?" It shakes its head. It was holding something with its tail.
"Wanna hand that over to Misty, Poliwag?" Misty holds out her hand.
"Poliwag." It nods, just because it was obeying, and handed over the object.
"Ouch!" Misty sucked on her finger. The object had cut her finger as she took it. "Oh my goodness!" Misty gasps. It was a knife. A double-edged, pocket-sized knife. "Where did you get this, Poliwag?"
"Poliwag." It motions its head towards her.
"This is mine?" Misty was shocked. "How did I…" Then she remembered. Her death. "Why did I…"
Misty drops the knife and it makes a thud as it hits the carpet. She stumbles back to her bed and has a seat, staring into the wall opposite of her. Her head was so deserted. She knew she had to die, but finding out that she did it herself; was worse. She had killed herself. She had committed suicide. Why did she? Misty sighs heavily and puts her hands palm- side up on her lap. She gazes down upon them to see a scar on each wrist. A slow, and secret death. She took her fingers and placed them on her neck. On each side was another thin scar as well, just incase the other cuts didn't kill her. Such memories, swimming through her mind. Splashing loudly to get her attention. Misty pulls back the cover of her bed, expecting to see blood-stained sheets. But no red…wait, there is a faint pink where she last lied down. On her pillow case as well.
"Poliwag." She finally says. "Where did you find this?"
"Poli!" It dives under the bed and back out again.
Misty couldn't keep her hands off of her neck. "Why did Misty do this? I mean, why did I do this."
"Psy?" Came Psyduck.
"You see…I'm not really Misty, guys. I'm Katherine Taddle, and I was once a Poliwag." Misty goes on and tells her story about her previous life. Her Pokemon listen intently. "And he was everything to me." She finishes. "I need to find him. Will you help me? Please?" All her Pokemon reply in a rowdy cheer of their own cries. "Thank you…"
The door bursts open and in comes Violet. "Oh, you're here. See, that's why I requested my own room when you came back, so I could have my privacy. It's like….AH!" She screams and puts her hands on her cheeks. She rushes over to Misty's side and picks up the knife. "Don't do it Misty! I don't hate you that much!"
It took quite some time to persuade Violet that Misty wasn't going to kill herself—again. Misty had to think up a pretty good story to get her out of her hair. She still didn't tell her about her being a Poliwag before, hence her calling her and her sisters Wanda, Cleo, and Roberta. After Violet finally left the room with what she originally came in to retrieve, Misty recalled all of her Pokemon and put them into her backpack. Togepi hopped into her arms and she went out the door, heading for the next down to the south. Her sister's wouldn't miss her, she was certain of that. Her only worry was how long this search would take her…and if she would succeed.