Chapter 5
The Crush
No, Chapter 4 wasn't the last chapter. Just the end of the first arc. As always, I appreciate your reviews, both good and bad. One thing though, not to be a know-it-all or anything, but "swum" is right. You use "swam" in the perfect case and "swum" in the imperfect,pluperfect, and future perfect. So, "She swam.", but "She has/had/will have swum."
May wasn't very happy about the next stop on the journey. Mt Moon. A cave. She could already see its ominous shape looming on the horizon.
"Brock, are you sure wehave to go through Mt. Moon to get to Pallet Town?" She asked.
"It's either that or climb it." Brock replied.
May sighed and hung her head. "I'm sick of caves! We just went through Rock Tunnel a week ago!"
"Please don't remind me of that." Ash said, grimacing.
Misty still didn't like it when something she hadn't been a part of was mentioned, but she decided it was better to try to work her way into the conversation than sulk about it. So she asked what had happened.
Max rolled his eyes. "It was awful. May thought she saw a Rattata and screamed, and it upset a nest of Zubats. And Rattatas don't even live in caves! Leave it to my sister to–" But then he got a nasty glance from May. He hid behind Ash before saying "You're scarier than any cave, May."
But May ignored it. There were bigger things to worry about. Like getting lost in Mt. Moon. Or getting attacked by a huge Pokemon in Mt. Moon. Or . . .
"Don't worry, May," Misty consoled, "we'll be fine as long as we have our Pokemon to protect us."
May brightened up a little at Misty's words. "Yeah, you're right. I'm being silly."
But her newfound confidence drained when they arrived at the base of the mountain. It was even bigger close up, its peak was shrouded by clouds. The mouth of the cave seemed to suck up any light that entered. How were their little flashlights going to help? May was reluctant to enter, but the others were already filing into the darkness. She took a deep breath before heading in.
Max, unlike his sister, couldn't wait to start exploring the cave. Brock's warning of "Everyone stick together so we don't get separated." Was already forgotten. There were new things to be studied everywhere he looked!
"Wow, look at this, I've never seen this kind of alga before!" He called excitedly.
May turned and pointed her flashlight in the direction of Max's voice. He was squatting beside a rock with some kind of green stuff on it.
"Ew, Max, don't touch that slime!" She reprimanded.
"It's not slime, it's some kind of moss."
"Well, whatever it is, it's gross. Don't touch it! And stop falling behind, you're gonna get lost!"
"May just doesn't get it at all." Max thought. "How can anyone go through a cave without finding anything interesting?"
But he stood up with a sigh and caught up to his friends. For a while anyway. Then he caught sight of some Pokemon footprints he didn't recognize.
"Hey guys, come look at this!" He called back, but they didn't hear him. They were already a few yards ahead, but Max just couldn't leave his new discovery alone.
"I'll catch up in a few minutes, after I find out where these lead." He thought. The footprints went farther and farther into the cave, and Max followed. But the trail of footprints didn't show any sign of ending. Max looked up to get his bearings, and, much to his dismay, he had no idea where he was.
"May!" He shouted. "Ash? Brock? Misty?"
But the only response was the screech of a flock of Zubats. Max dove to the ground as the room filled with them, dropping his flashlight to cover his head with his hands. The flashlight blinked on and off for a few seconds, and then the light died completely.
"Uh-oh . . ." Max squeaked.
Normally he would have known better, but in his panic he stood up and started looking for a way out. But there was nothing to be found in the winding tunnels except more darkness. Finally, tired and scared, Max gave up.
"What am I gonna do?" He moaned to himself. "I'm never gonna get out like this!"
Just when he was about to give up all hope, Max heard voices. Human voices. They weren't those of his friends, but they sounded a bit familiar. It was hard to tell though, because of the echo in the cave. Max couldn't have cared less who it was though; he was relieved to get find any help at all. Without another thought, he ran in toward the voices, hoping to find their owners.
May stiffened when she heard the high-pitched voices of Zubats. They sounded pretty far away, but she couldn't be too sure after her experience at Rock Tunnel.
"Max, stick close, ok?" No answer.
"Ok? Max?" May wheeled around, but Max was nowhere in sight.
"Hey Ash, is Max up there with you?" She asked.
"I thought he was with you!" Replied Ash.
"He was a just minute ago."
Brock noticed the worry in May's voice. "Don't worry, he couldn't have gone very far. We're bound to find him if we retrace our steps." He said.
And so they did. But after five minutes of searching the cave and finding nothing, May started to get desperate.
"What am I going to do if we never find him?!" She wailed.
Misty was starting to worry too, but for May's sake, she tried not to show it.
"Max is a smart kid, May." She said, putting a hand on May's shoulder. "If we don't find him, I'm sure he'll find us."
Ash nodded in agreement. "Misty's right. He's probably just fine."
May, however, was unconvinced. "But what if he's hurt?! Or–"
"Well we're not helping Max by just standing around worrying." Brock cut in. "Let's keep looking."
They had only gone a few steps when Pikachu picked up on a familiar scent. It sniffed until it found the object giving off the scent, and then alerted its trainer. Ash shined his flashlight on the object: Max's flashlight.
May, who had been holding it together pretty well until then, suddenly burst into tears.
"Why would he just leave his flashlight? Something must have happened to him!" She lamented.
"Stay calm." Said Brock. "Look, there's two sets of footprints on the ground. One of them must belong to Max."
"So Max must be at the end! Let's go!" Ash said, and then he led the way into a narrow tunnel. Brock caught up and followed the trail of footprints with his flashlight. Misty came next, and finally May, praying that she would find her brother safe at the end.
And finally, there was Max, sitting on the ground, shaken, but unharmed.
"Max!" Yelled May as she ran to him.
"May!" He replied. "Help! I'm tied up!"
"Huh?" She stopped in her tracks and looked more carefully at him. Sure enough, there were ropes binding his arms behind his back.
"Hang on! I'll untie you!"
But before May could reach Max, a tall figure emerged from the darkness and blocked her path.
"Not so fast, little girl." The figure said. A man's voice.
May was undaunted. "What do you want with my brother?! Who are you?! " She yelled.
A second figure came out of the blackness and joined its partner.
"I'm glad you asked that question." It said.
A woman's voice this time. She and the man took out flashlights and shown them in their faces, revealing their identities.
"Team Rocket!" Everyone exclaimed, somehow in unison.
"No no no!" Yelled the woman, Jessie. "You don't say 'Team Rocket!' until after we do the motto!"
Ash sighed and looked impatient. "Ok, go ahead then." He said.
Jessie cleared her throat and tossed her long red hair before beginning.
"Prepare for trouble."
James, the man, ran ahis fingers through his blue hair. "And make it double." He said.
"To protect the world from devastation."
"To unite all people within our nation."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"
A small cat like Pokemon jumped in front of Jessie and James and posed with its paws held up to its head. "Meowth, that's right!" It said.
"Ok, now you can say it." Said James.
"Team Rocket!" Repeated the group.
"What are you doing here?!" Ash demanded.
"We was tryin' to get ahead of youse twoips so's we could dig a trap and catch Pikachu," said Meowth.
"But then we got kind of lost." Finished James, putting his hand behind his head and grinning in embarrassment.
Everyone face-faulted at Team Rocket's stupidity.
"How could you get lost if you were following us?!" Misty yelled.
Jessie noticed Misty for the first time.
"Well, well, if it isn't the redheaded twerpette. Haven't seen you in a while." She said
"Skip the pleasantries, Jessie, let Max go!"
"I'm sorry, but we can't do that. However, we might be persuaded to make a little trade. We'll let the kid go if you give us Pikachu."
Pikachu said its name and began sparking at its cheeks, ready for battle, but Misty beat Ash to it.
"Fat chance!" She said, plucking a Pokeball from her belt. Then she pressed a button that enlarged it and threw it to the ground.
"Go, Gyarados!" She called.
The Pokeball opened and released the giant beast inside. Gyarados roared to announce its presence and prepared to fight while May ran for cover behind Brock.
"Fine, if that's the way you want it." Jessie threw her own Pokeball to meet Misty's Gyarados.
"Go, Seviper!" She called.
A huge black snake appeared from the Pokeball and glared menacingly at its opponent.
Max watched with rapt attention. He had seen Misty battle only once before, and he was eager to learn more about her style. But Jessie made the first move.
"Seviper, use your poison sting attack!" She ordered.
Seviper opened its mouth obediently and launched its shining missiles at Gyarados. It was a direct hit that left Gyarados growling in pain.
"Gyarados!" Misty called.
But there was no need for concern. Gyarados had already recovered and was ready to attack.
"Ok Gyarados, bubble beam!"
Gyarados shot a stream of bubbles from its mouth at Seviper who was knocked to the ground.
"Seviper, get up! Don't lose to that oversized dragon!" Screamed Jessie.
James cheered from the sidelines. "Come on Seviper, you can do it!"
Seviper was tired, but it wanted to please its master. It struggled up and did its best to appear intimidating.
Jessie, seeing that she was still in the battle, commanded another attack. "Now Seviper, bite it!"
Seviper flung itself at Gyarados and latched on with its sharp teeth, but Gyarados could barely feel it through its scales.
"Shake it off, Gyarados!" Shouted Misty.
Gyarados swung its massive head around and around. Seviper did its best to hold on, but finally it became too weak to keep it up and was sent sailing across the room.
Misty knew that it was as good as over. "Good, now finish it with hydro pump!"
Gyarados reared back and aimed a river of water at Seviper. It was sent flying backwards and crashed into Team Rocket, forcing them all through the entrance of the next tunnel.
A crash was heard by Misty and her friends, followed cries of "Graveller!" and Team Rocket's pleas of "No! Please don't hurt us! We're sorry!" But the angry Graveller was not pacified. The group sweat-dropped as th boulder Pokemon stomped into the room carrying Team Rocket over its body.
"Looks like Team Rocket got carried away again!" Cried Jessie and James as the Graveller carried them through another tunnel. More thumping and banging entered the room, but it was getting farther away.
Misty ran to her Gyarados and as soon as Team Rocket was out of earshot. "You did a great job, Gyarados." She congratulated, and did her best to hug it despite its size.
Gyarados grinned and roared with pride.
"Great, can you put it away now, please?" Asked May, who hadn't left her place behind Brock.
"Oh, sorry May." Misty returned her Pokemon to its Pokeball and placed the ball back on her hip.
Now that the coast was clear, May ran to her little brother and knelt to untie him.
"I told you to keep up!" She scolded. "You've caused a lot of trouble!"
She softened when she saw Max's guilty expression though, and added "But I'm glad you're ok."
Then they both stood, ready to continue through the cave.
"What do you say we find a way out of here?" Brock said.
May replied "Sounds good to me!" and the group began their trek through the cave once more.
Max wanted to thank Misty for saving him, so he caught up to her at the front of the group.
"Thanks for rescuing me." He said. "Sorry if I caused you any trouble."
"Oh, don't worry about it, Max, Team Rocket's easy to beat. It was actually kinda fun." Replied Misty.
Max just stared at his feet. "Yeah, you were great, but I couldn't help myself at all."
"That's just because you don't have any Pokemon. When you become a trainer, Team Rocket will be no problem for you."
"You really think so?"
"I know so."
Max blushed furiously at Misty's remark. Was she just being polite? No, he could tell that she really believed in him. Sometimes May and the others talked down to him, but not Misty. She didn't treat him like a little kid. Max felt something he had never felt before. It was sort of a happy, excited feeling, like a spring breeze. And it was Misty who caused it.
These were Max's thoughts when something shiny caught his eye. Upon further investigation, he found it to be a piece of quartz. The light from May's flashlight must have reflected off of it.
Misty followed Max and knelt on the ground beside him to see what he had found.
"What are you looking at, Max?" She asked.
Max held the rock in front of Misty's flashlight to make it shine again. Quartz was common, but this piece was especially brilliant. Impurities inside of it made the light dance across the ground, refracting it into rainbows.
"Wow, it's beautiful!" Misty gasped.
"You can have it if you want." Max shrugged as if he were indifferent, but inside he was proud that his discovery had impressed Misty so. She took it and thanked him with a smile, but the moment was ruined by Ash yelling "Are you guys coming or not?"
Max hadn't even realized that he'd fallen behind again. But Misty was with him, so it was all right. They ran to join the rest of the group, and soon they found Mt. Moon's exit.
"Light!" Cried May. "Come on, let's get out of here!"
She led the way out into the fading sunlight.
"What time is it?" She asked.
"I'd say six or seven o'clock." Responded Brock, frowning. "Dealing with Team Rocket put us an hour behind schedule. Anyway, it's going to be too dark to see soon, so we should probably set up camp here."
It wasn't easy to find a good spot on the rocky ground, but finally they came across a grassy patch of land and settled in. Then everyone was assigned tasks for preparing dinner and got to work.
Ash and Max were to find firewood, Misty and May chopped up vegetables, and Brock was going to cook. Ash led Max over the rocky terrain to group of pitiful looking trees. Their roots did were not able to get very far into the rough ground, and so they were stubby and thin from lack of nutrients. Ash set to work pulling branches off the trees, but Max wasn't putting much effort into it. He kept looking back to where Misty and May sat peeling potatoes. They were chatting easily about this and that while they worked, laughing now and then at some amusing comment. Max had never noticed how pretty Misty was until then, but in the light of the setting sun, it was clear to him. Her hair glowed amber, and her eyes sparkled like the quartz he had given her. She was so . . .
But Ash, tired of doing all the work himself, snapped Max out of his trance. "How about a little help here?" He said impatiently.
"Huh? Oh, sorry!"
"Are you ok? You were sorta spacing out."
"Yeah, I'm fine." But Max couldn't help taking one last glance at Misty.
"Isn't Misty amazing?" He sighed.
"Yeah . . ." Responded Ash. "Huh? Wait, no! I mean–"
But Max wasn't even listening. "She's kind, smart, nice, and an awesome trainer. Can I tell you a secret, Ash? Man to man?"
Ash wasn't sure where Max was going with all this, but he listened.
"I think I'm in love." Max confessed with a blush.
"What?!" Ash exclaimed. And, not wanting to hurt Max's feelings, he added "I mean, don't you think she's a little old for you?"
"Love knows no age." Max said smartly.
"I just hope Misty knows that."
"She's too cool to care about that."
Ash frowned. He had a feeling that Max was going to get hurt. There was no way Misty was going to go out with a little kid like him. And even though she was kind, and would try not to hurt Max's feelings . . . well, it was not going to be easy for him. Ash knew first hand how much it hurt to have a crush on Misty. He only wished that he could have the same confidence Max had. Maybe then Misty would . . . but no. No amount of confidence could change the way she felt.
Ash heard Brock calling for him to come back to the campsite, so he and Max gathered their branches and started back.
Soon everyone had eaten and it was time to sleep. In the morning they would continue to Pewter City, Brock's hometown, but right now, they were glad for the break. The little adventure in Mt. Moon had tired the group, and they all fell asleep quickly under the stars.