Chapter 5: In Which They Take an Enormously Long Lunch Break

Some hours after the Jigglypuff had attacked, everyone began to wake up.

"Ugh," Tracey said, "that jigglypuff colored on my drawing! Now it's ruined!"

Brynna was also angry. "That... that... thing colored on my glasses! Oh, it will pay for this!"

Misty didn't seem quite so upset. "You all look so funny!" she laughed.

"Uh, Misty..." said Tracey.

"What?" asked Misty.

"You've got 'I Love Ash' written in big letters across your face."

"I do?" said Misty angrily. Then she paused for a moment. "Hey, since when can jigglypuffs write?"

"Since the author said so," said Brynna absently.

Misty gave her an odd look.

"I don't think that jigglypuffs is the proper plural for jigglypuff," commented Brock.

"Oh yeah? What is it then, jigglypi?"

"Pie?" said Ash. "Where?"

"There isn't any," said Misty shortly, and proceeded to attempt to get the marker off her face. "And you look like a Meowth."

"What?" said Ash.

"You do. The jigglypuff gave you whiskers and a coin thingy on your head."

"Yeah, well, you have 'I Love Ash' written in big letters across your face!"

"I know that already."

"Hey..." said Ash thoughtfully. "Since when can jigglypuffs write?"

"Didn't you listen to a word of our conversation before?"

"No... should I have?"

"Never mind. Anyway, I don't know how come that jigglypuff could write, but hey, you've got to admit that that was a pretty strange jigglypuff."

"Yeah."

Some hours and a great deal of scrubbing later..

"I think-" Ash began.

"You do?" interrupted Brynna, who was not in a very good mood because she hadn't been able to get all of the marker scribblings off of her glasses. "That's news to me."

Ash ignored her for once. "I think," he announced, "that it is time for lunch."

"What?" exclaimed Brynna. "We can't take a break now, we've stopped for long enough already!"

"It's nearly two o'clock and I haven't had my lunch yet," Ash said stubbornly. "I'm starving."

"Me too."

"Me three."

"Me four."

"Pika."

Brynna looked around. "I hear a Pikachu," she said, "but I don't see one anywhere around. Where is it, I wonder?"

Ash groaned inwardly. How was he going to explain this one? Deciding he had no choice but to tell the truth, Ash sighed. "It's invisible."

"What?"

"My Pikachu became invisible several years ago in an accident involving experimental machinery, explosive chemicals, two jars of jelly, and an old sock. But it's only invisible sometimes, and then other times you can see it."

"Ha ha. No, where is it really?"

"I told you, it's invisible."

"Suuuure."

"It's true, I swear."

"Since I'm obviously not going to get a serious answer from you, I suppose I'll just drop it."

"Okay, why don't we eat now?" Tracy suggested, deciding to intervene.

Everyone agreed that this was a good idea, and got the food out of their backpacks.

Everyone began eating happily, including Pikachu. Thankfully, Brynna seemed oblivious to the slowly disappearing Pokémon food.

They talked very little while they ate, and what conversation they did have was rather strained. But eventually, when Brynna got fed up with them and wandered off, they all loosened up a bit and started chatting.

"What do you see in her, anyway?" Ash asked Brock once he was sure that Brynna was safely out of earshot.

"Who?" asked Brock, not quite understanding Ash's question.

"Professor Douglas-Fir. Brynna. She's not the sort of person I would ever want to date."

Brock looked, if it was possible, even more confused than he had been before he'd known who Ash had been talking about. "She's female. She's pretty. And she's smart. What's wrong with her?"

"She's mean," said Ash, who had thought that this would be obvious.

"So?" said Brock. "It doesn't really matter. And anyway, she's not really any meaner to me than girls usually are."

"Well, maybe if you stopped acting so desperate and being all over every female you see who's between the ages of seventeen and thirty, maybe they'd be nicer to you," Misty snapped.

Ash, Brock, and Tracy looked bewildered by the vehemence of Misty's comment. So did Misty.

"Sorry," she said, and turned back to her food. After a moment of uncomfortable silence, so did everyone else. The incident was quickly forgotten, and soon everyone was talking again.

Some time later, Brynna came rushing back. She couldn't help noticing that Pikachu, now visible once more, was sitting on the ground next to Ash. She gave the Pokémon a suspicious look before saying, rather breathlessly, "What day is it?"

"I've no idea," said Brock. "Why?"

"Because I've got this sinking feeling that it's Saturday."

"And...?" said Ash.

"On Saturdays the last boat out of here leaves at 5:30 pm, and then the port closes until Monday."

"So?"

"So it's 4:30 now! If we don't hurry, we'll miss the boat!"

"So we wait another two days. So what?"

"So I can't stand to be on this stupid island any longer than I have to." She tried to say this calmly, but the others could see her cool, icy, condescending façade unraveling. It was rather a frightening sight (although they'd have to get used to it soon enough). "Let's go!"

"Okay, okay," they said hastily, remembering how scary she (or her older self) had been before- was it only that morning?

Everyone packed up their things. Pikachu jumped onto Ash's head. And they started off in the general direction of the port, following Brynna and praying that she was right about where they were going.

They were relieved when they finally reached Chartreuse Town about forty-five minutes later.

"Where's the next boat going to?" Misty asked the man at the ticket selling counter.

"Johto," he replied.

"But I wanted to go to-" Brynna began.

"Five tickets please," Misty said, ignoring her.

"Pika!"

"Sorry, six tickets."

The man told Misty how much it would cost. Misty's jaw dropped. "I don't have that much!" she blurted, before she could stop herself.

"Then you don't get the tickets," said the man at the ticket counter.

Misty turned to her friends. "Okay, who's got money?"

Ash, Brock, and Tracy looked at one another.

"I brought enough money to pay for my ticket," said Brynna.

"Oh good," said Misty.

Brynna walked up to the ticket counter. "One ticket, please. I'm not with them." She handed the ticket seller her money. He handed her her ticket. She smiled smugly and walked off.

Ash, Misty, and Tracy watched her go with consternation.

"That... that... she had no right to do that!" Misty said indignantly.

"That wasn't very nice of her," Tracy agreed.

"Since when has she ever been nice?" said Ash. "Really, I'm just as happy that she left."

Brock was quiet for a moment, then said, "We have ten minutes until the boat leaves."

There was a pause.

"So... um, anyone else got money?" Misty asked with a weak smile.