Just a little one-shot I decided to write. It's in Misty's POV, and is my first Pokemon fic. Contains hints of Ash/Misty, aka AAML, aka AAMRN aka Pokeshipping or Twerpshipping. (wow, that's a lot of names!) Please, enjoy!

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Lots of people have passed through my life. For instance, I barely remember my mother and father. Just soft hands, pretty laugh, strong arms, and warmth. My sisters fade in and out of my memory, sometimes being the good siblings and teaching me how to care for my Pokemon, and sometimes being the evil sisters and leaving me out while they chase after fame and fortune. My Pokemon, especially my Staryu (my first Pokemon) were always there for me, and would comfort me whenever I needed it.

And then there was him. He, the overconfident trainer with big hopes and an even bigger appetite, who just barged into my life, ruining my bike at the same time. I was not happy, to say the least. That bike was one of the only things that I owned, that belonged to me and me alone. It was a present from my long deceased mother. When I was little, my sisters (they were nicer to me then) would tuck me in and take turns telling me the story.

Mom was the last child in her family, Violet would begin, and I would smile, because this was my favorite tale, and knew how important it was to each child that they got something of their own, especially to the youngest, since they would be getting all of the hand-me-downs. I got Mom's jewelry, Lily got her clothes and Daisy got her Pokemon Dolls.

Mom knew that you were going to be the adventurous, Lily would continue, from the way that you would wander off all the time as soon as you could walk. Mom had been an adventurous girl in her day, before she fell in love with Dad, who was one of the trainers at our Gym.

She used to ride everywhere on her bike, Daisy would add, and they would all smile in remembrance. She wanted to give it to you Misty, because she knew you would make good use of it. So she wrote a letter to you, saying that when you were ten you could read it. She knew that you could legally have a Pokemon on that day. She was ten when she started on her adventure from Pallet, and eventually ended up here, in Cerulean.

At that time, they would all kiss me goodnight, and I would close my eyes, dreaming of that time, when I began on my own adventure. In my dreams, there was my mother there, who guided me with steady hands as she held up the bike for me as I learned to ride.

Well, that day came and went, and I enjoyed riding my new bike to the ocean everyday, training my Pokemon on the beach. I missed my mother though, and had to learn to ride it on my own, as my sisters weren't into traveling or mechanics. I had to learn that on my own, as well as battling and catching Pokemon. But at the same time, I was angry at my mother. I didn't understand why she wasn't here to help me, or why she couldn't come back and teach me to do everything that mothers are supposed to do. I took everything out on my mother then, blaming her for the way my sisters sometimes treated me, for the boys that teased me at school, for everything that went wrong in my life.

But then, like I said, he came. Like a bolt of electricity, he shocked me with his impudence. How dare he wreck my bike?! It was the only thing that I had from my mother! And so I followed him, intent on getting my revenge. And, like everything else, I took this out on my mother. If she was here, this so called trainer wouldn't have destroyed my bike, because we would have been far away from him, on our own adventure.

I'd like to say that the sole reason I continued to journey with him was because of the ruined bicycle, but I would be lying...lying badly.

One of the reasons I stayed was because he had the air of adventure about him. Mom was right; I did love adventure. I hated to stay in one place for more than a month, which was why I loved traveling with Ash. And as I found out, trouble just followed him, mostly taking the form of Team Rocket. I was still angry at my mother though, because I had always imagined her to be coming with me on my first journey, not this person who put a Caterpie against a Pidegy!

Another was because I had a dream too, a dream to become the greatest Water Master. Although this was his journey, I did learn a lot...more than I would sitting back at home. I found new Pokemon, capturing a few, and I made new friends. Brock was one, and he became my substitute big brother. I became Togepi's mother, caring for the infant, and I honed my skills against other trainers. My mother was still not there with me, however. And sometimes I would catch myself thinking that if she were here, she would have taught me all she knew about Water Pokemon, and I wouldn't have to spend time trying to figure out which move was better by myself.

I had a family now too. It was Brock, Ash, Pikachu and Togepi and I. We were all close friends, all together on this little journey of ours. Brock was the big brother, like I said. Togepi would be the baby, and Pikachu, the helpful brother. My mother was still not here however, and that infuriated me. But Ash...

Well, that brings me to the main reason that I stayed with him. I liked him. A lot. He was my best friend, and maybe someday he would be more than that. I enjoyed arguing with him, I loved to cheer him on in battles and I took great pleasure just accompanying him on his journey to be the best. No matter how much I pretended to hate him because of the destruction that he did, I couldn't. He was immature, yeah, and dense, and stubborn and overconfident and about a million other things that I made fun of. But those things were small compared to the other gifts that he had. He really cared about his Pokemon, for one. He couldn't stand to see them, or anyone else, unhappy. He would do everything in his power to make people and Pokemon alike happy. He was also very easy to talk to, and when I am with him I feel like I can tell him anything. And he - well, if I go on like this I'll end up talking forever.

And in a way, I'm happy that he ruined my bike. I would have never been the person I am now had it not been for that obnoxious boy that shoved his way into my life...and eventually, my heart. I had traded my only memento of my mother for this him, and I know that it was a good trade.

And I also know now that my mother was always there for me. It wasn't her fault that she died before I knew her. It wasn't her fault that my sisters became the Sensational Three, and not the Sensational Four. It wasn't her fault that the boys at school had teased me because I was a tomboy.

But I like to think that my mother was responsible for this boy, this Ash Ketchem, coming into my life. Ash, who had become my best friend, and the source of all of my happiness. Because of him, I have a true family, Pokemon who I care for, adventure, and maybe, someday, a little romance. And my mother was still there in my heart, with the boy I loved, guiding my with her strong and steady hands, just like I imagined, long ago.

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Like it? Please, tell me what you think!