I would ask each and every one of you to wring my neck (or at least do something sadistic to me) for how long it has taken me to get this written, but then, I guess, you'd never know what happens in this story, right? I mean, TWO MONTHS AND A HALF! COME ON, EEVEE! I know many of you don't believe in excuses, but here are mine anyway: This semester I have an evil and insane English teacher who totally zaps all of the joy of writing out of me; I ended up writing a short story for my mom's birthday in mid-February; Another anime caught my attention and sucked my Poke-ness away for a week as that series started (I'll let you all figure out what it is I had an 'affair' with…) but my Poke-ness is back now. So there you have it, and now for my apologies: I'm sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, and… sorry. I thank all of you loyal fans for sticking with me, and I mourn for those readers I have lost because of the longevity of my posting absence. Oh, yeah, almost forgot… Chapter 9's title of "…share with me your secrets deep inside…" comes from the song What Kind Of Pokémon Are You? from the Pokémon: 2 B A Master CD. Congratulations to these readers and reviewers: The girl who flamed, Funkyafroman, Marlex, bluejolteon, P.R. Dragonite, happyham, Stacee, Jirachi the Legend, chipsyketchum, J.C. the Wabbit, KasumiSatoshi, Chibimatchmaker, Sparklewolf, Ri2, Uppa, and JediMasterDariaak. Finally, here we go… !
CHAPTER 10: …Never Gonna Stop Searching For You…
The three figures, bursting out of the foliage in their chorus of angry shouting, all wore expressions of the most extreme kind. May, clutching a rather frightened Togepi exceptionally tight to her chest, had worry lines etched across her brow, and her sapphire eyes glittered in tranquil doubt and mistrust. Max had a look of the utmost disgust on his face, his caramel eyes narrowed in repugnance behind his black-rimmed glasses and his mouth sneering in scorn. Brock was simply livid, the very picture of cold hatred shinning in his narrow onyx eyes and heavily inward-slanted eyebrows. Understandably, Team Rocket was instantly filled with immobilizing terror, which only strengthened from what it had been on Jesse and James' parts, for they hadn't yet gotten over their fear of what the snowy caverns far under them housed in its deepest grotto.
As the three 'twerps' emerged from bushes at the edge of the clearing and galloped toward the Rocket members in the center of the meadow beside the hole, a whole menagerie of Pokémon, the 'twerp' Pokémon, followed close on their heels. First came Poochyena, barking and bounding after his master through the shrubbery in the longest strides he could muster on his short furry legs, an unnaturally serious look on his face. Then four Pokémon appeared in a whirl of wings from the canopy of the forest, Beautifly and Crobat flying closer to the ground and Noctowl and Wingull above, all crying out savagely in their own languages. Next came Pikachu and Treecko hurtling out of the branches of the trees, Treecko with gleaming yellow eyes and mouth clamped tightly on his twig toothpick, and Pikachu landing on the ground in a shower of frenzied sparks that erupted from his ruby cheeks.
In the headlong dash towards the paralyzed Team Rocket, Pokéballs were eagerly snatched off of belts and from inside bags, and their Pokémon contents released from the red-and-white spheres as the Pokémons' names were shouted out. A whole squad of aquatic creatures appeared from their Pokéballs, Corphish, Corsola, Staryu, Psyduck, Lotad, and Mudkip, followed by Brock's roaring Rock- type Onix. Vulpix and Torchic arrived on the scene in a fiery blaze of force, and Bayleef, her eyes glittering furiously, charged forward towards Team Rocket with an indignant bawl.
The three Team Rocket members immediately crawled to each other and became a jumble as they clambered to hide behind the others, the end result being Meowth squeezed in the middle as Jesse and James grabbed onto each other in terror. They tried to scoot backwards away from the oncoming stampede, but were prevented when Onix, and the four Flying- types that landed on Onix's rocky surface, blocked them from behind. The Water- types clustered together to confine Jesse, James, and Meowth to Team Rocket's right, and Poochyena, Torchic, Vulpix, Treecko, and Bayleef enclosed their enemies to the left. Pikachu, his cheeks sparking as if he had short-circuited, was alone in blocking the group in the front, but that fact didn't matter, for the look on his face was enough to keep anyone away. "PIKA!" he shrieked, standing on his back paws and balling his front ones into fists. An eruption of flickering electricity made Team Rocket flinched.
At that moment, May, Brock, and Max hurtled past Pikachu to stop right in front of the recoiling threesome, and glowered at Jesse, James, and Meowth, respectively. May stood rigid in front of Jesse, still clutching the alarmed Togepi, with a look on her face that surpassed any dirty look that she had given Jesse during their clash over whose Wurmple was whose. Meowth was quite alarmed at the way that Max stared unblinkingly at him in repulsion, the lenses of his glasses glistening as they reflected the late afternoon sun. James gulped, for he had clearly gotten the worse end of the bargain. He was now subject to the wrath of an uncommonly and exceptionally angry Brock.
Brock wasted no time in intimidating his enemy, but went straight for the throat… literally. He grabbed James' white uniform collar with both hands and dragged him off the ground. "WHERE ARE THEY?" Brock yelled desperately in James' face. James was scared completely speechless. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THEM? WHAT HAVE YOU THREE DONE WITH THEM THIS TIME, YOU… YOU…"
"Brock," Max spoke up in a soft monotone, his voice quivering, "Calm down a bit, huh? Don't worry…" he glared forbiddingly at Meowth again, and the cat flinched, "…they'll tell us alright."
After a tense moment, Brock let James drop to the ground, and an immensely tired look swept his face. "You're right, Max. I… I didn't mean to lose my temper, but… they keep doing this. They keep… stalking us, and I've about had it." Suddenly, all of the ferocious anger that had built up inside of him was gone. Eyes becoming moist in grief, Brock slowly walked past Team Rocket (which caused the three to watch his movements carefully) and sat down gently on his Onix's rocky back next to Noctowl. Jesse, glancing at James rubbing his sore neck gently, was surprised at how angry the Cooking Twerp had gotten. He rarely ever lost his temper, and was usually the most calm of all of them. And we haven't done anything, this time, either… Jesse realized that the Cooking Twerp was talking about the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp. They obviously haven't found the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp yet… Jesse stifled a gasp. Of course not… there's no way that they could have found them before us… they… don't know… what happened yet…
It was then that the three Team Rocket members saw how flushed the faces of the twerps had been the whole time. They had obviously been running a very long way for a very long time, just as Jesse and James had been running. May was breathing heavily, Max's normally coiffed hair was hanging limply around his face, and Brock was dripping in sweat, which was mingled with a few wet tears. Though they didn't seem as drained, even the twerps' Pokémon looked a bit weary. Team Rocket had no idea as to how the twerps had found them, out here in the middle of the woods of Route 119, in a place the twerps had already searched and left a long time ago.
"Just for the record," Jesse spat bitterly, after a ragged silence in which all of their heart rates slowly decelerated, "We didn't do anything to your precious little twerp friends this time, twerps." Pikachu sparked angrily, amidst a small chorus of booing barks and shrieks from his fellow Pokémon teammates and friends.
"You have them," Brock muttered plainly, from behind the trio of scoundrels, "In that hole over there." Everyone's eyes seemed to dart over to the hole in the dirt on the ground of the meadow. "You set another trap for them, like always, and they fell into it. So you have them. Give us Ash and Misty… now." The Pokémon all nodded savagely. May and Max, who had backed up to stand on either side of Pikachu, also nodded.
"Didn't 'cha hear whats she justs said?" Meowth spoke up heatedly, "She's said that's we don't gots them, so that means we don't!"
"Yeah right!" May inserted skeptically.
Max was looking rather thoughtful, staring down at Jesse, James, and Meowth. "…I don't know," he pondered aloud, brushing a piece of hair out of his face, "…Maybe they really don't."
"See?" Jesse mentally breathed a small sigh of relief, "We really didn't do anything to your two missing twerps." …But we should have… we should have done what James had wanted to do… we should have taken the Main Twerp and the Main Female Twerp's d-… d-…dead bodies with us… She somberly passed her eyes over at the hole in the ground, then glanced at James. He had been silent the whole time, and his own emerald eyes were fixed dully on the gap that lead down to the caverns underneath them.
"I still don't believe it," Brock replied unenthusiastically, crossing his arms, "We've searched almost this whole forest for them for almost twenty-four hours now, and we still haven't found them, so they've obviously been prevented from rejoining us by something."
"They have." James quietly spoke up. His eyebrows were furrowed together. Only Jesse understood the irony of his comment.
"Of course they have!" May loudly proclaimed, setting Togepi on the ground. Hands on her hips, she leered at the trio. "By you three! You three have prevented them!"
"We haven't!" Jesse defended herself and her teammates as hotly as she could while the image of the pallid motionless bodies burned in her brain.
"Yes, you have," Max replied, but without entire conviction.
"For the last time, we haven't done anything to your twerpy little friends!" Jesse shouted.
"Why are we always the ones to blame?" James whispered quietly in Meowth's ear, distraught, "I mean, I know that ninety-nine percent of the time we are the ones to blame, but that doesn't mean always! Why don't they think Team Aqua or Team Magma made off with them, or even Cassidy and Botch? Why don't they think they… eloped or something?"
"Why's woulds they's thinks that?" Meowth softly purred back with a joking sneer. James remembered whose side of the bet Meowth was on, and he frowned, his eyes narrowing. Meowth chuckled. "Ands for Persian's sakes, Jimmy boy, the guy's name's is Butch, nots Botch. Geesh, evens I'd hate to be called Skitty."
"Well, my name's not Jimmy boy," James muttered resentfully back. To say the truth, he wasn't in the mood to really care about his answer. All he could think about was the caverns underneath them.
"Shut up!" Jesse quickly rounded on them, which stopped the somewhat bizarre conversation that had been whispered behind her. She felt very mixed up right now, and that made her feel vexed. Her brain was spinning from trying to argue with the twerps while the image of a dead Ash and Misty flashed across her eyes, pushing her to explain what she had seen in the cavern. Most of her body was aching, and her legs were especially sore from all of the running she had been doing, and from sitting so long on the hard ground. It felt like too much. Jesse could stand it no longer. With a groan of exhaustion, Jesse lowered head down into her hands. Everyone stared at her, puzzled. James carefully placed a hand on her shoulder, to see if she was all right. In a muffled voice, she slowly muttered, "We… did not… do anything… to… them."
Brock was not phased by this statement, May began to look a little doubtful, and Max seemed on the verge of being convinced. The young boy adjusted his glasses a bit, then slowly questioned, "If you three don't have Ash and Misty, then what is this hole doing here? And why were you, Meowth, guarding it if Ash and Misty aren't in it?"
"How'd dos yous know that I was sittin' there?" Meowth asked incredulously.
"Noctowl and Wingull," May replied, "They were flying over the forest to see if they could see Ash and Misty, but they only saw you sitting by that hole."
"Noctowl and Wingull thought that you lot might have taken them," Brock continued, placing a hand on Noctowl's head and rubbing it in praise. Noctowl closed his eyes and hooted gently. Wingull rustled her feathers, eyeing the trio almost hungrily, as if she would like nothing better than to attack them ferociously with all of her power. "So they came back to get us."
"And we ran all of the way here," Max sighed wearily.
Pikachu's ears drooped in tiredness. His cheeks had stopped sparking. "Pika," he agreed with Max.
"So why were you sitting by that hole then, Meowth," Brock asked, "if you didn't capture our friends with another one of your dumb schemes to catch Pikachu?"
In a stubborn streak, Meowth crossed his paws and declared haughtily, "I ain't tellin' yous nothing!"
Knowing that this could cause a major uproar in the twerp Pokémon ranks, which could send them blasting off again, James quickly spoke up, "I'll tell you." Meowth appeared outraged at this, and he looked to see what Jesse thought of it. She didn't seem to notice; at least, she didn't look up. Her head was still in her hands. Meowth thought the opposite, but James knew that Jesse wanted him to say this, for she wanted to do so herself, but couldn't.
"…Well?" May asked, prompting him.
"Meowth was sitting there because…" James paused for a second, unsure if to continue, "…he was waiting for Jesse and I to come back up the hole. You see, we fell into it."
This statement caused a bit of merriment among the twerps' Pokémon that were circled around Team Rocket. They all grinned and chuckled in their own ways. Max snorted in laughter and May giggled teasingly. A small smile flitted across Brock's face. "Well, that's no surprise," he muttered, when the gaiety had died down, "I'll believe that. Continue."
"And, well…" James didn't know how to explain everything exactly.
"How did you two fall in the hole?" May pressed impatiently, "Why did you dig the hole, if it wasn't a trap?"
"Well, first of all, we didn't dig the hole," James sputtered quickly. Meowth gave him a dirty look for revealing the trio's secrets. "It was there all ready when we got here. And, well… we decided that we would use the hole, rather than dig one, because…" his face grew a bit red apologetically, "… we heard you three twerps coming and we wanted… to try to catch Pikachu."
This statement produced groans out of the Pokémon and their trainers. Pikachu's ears drooped perpendicularly to the ground, and he sighed, muttering to himself and wondering why it always had to be him that Team Rocket was after. After a moment, Max waved for everyone to be silent, and their noises slowly diminished to nothing. When it was totally silent, he motioned for James to continue.
"…So… it was a trap, but we… didn't dig it. We didn't know how deep it was either," James stammered, and Brock wondered why James would mention the hole's depth, "So, anyway, you twerps and your Pokémon came through this meadow, but you three walked right over the top of the hole and went on. It didn't cave in. Jesse…" he glanced at her. Her head was still in her hands, and she showed no sign of listening, though he knew she was. "…She was really ang-… upset, so we went over to the hole to see why it hadn't caved in. Then, we realized we didn't know where the hole had been ourselves, because we covered it up so well, but we didn't find it… until we fell down it, of course."
Poochyena had looked downcast and solemn throughout James' whole story, and had whined during the last part. Glancing at his small Pokémon, Max's eyes suddenly lit up. "Poochy," he muttered softly, "You knew the hole was there, didn't you? You could smell it, but… I didn't know what you were saying." Poochyena looked up at his master with sad eyes and nodded. Max's shoulders drooped, and he patted his leg so Poochyena would come sit by him. The wolf pup did, and Max ruffled Poochyena's pointed ears sadly. I can't even understand my own Pokémon… I could never be as good a trainer as Ash if I can't… He and Pikachu understand each other perfectly… We'll work on it, then.
"And then what?" Brock pressured James to go on with his story. He was getting impatient. If Team Rocket really didn't have Ash and Misty, he wanted to get on with the search for them.
James thought about it for a moment, his emerald eyes glazed over in contemplation. Finally, he spoke in a fast whisper, "Well… Jesse and I… it isn't really a hole… it's a tunnel…" Meowth was listening intently, for he didn't know this part, "… it's a tunnel and it goes straight down into the ground… and it leads down into… these… caverns. There are these enormous caverns, very long and tall, with the stalagmites and stalactites, you know. They're huge caverns, and… they're filled with snow. A whole bunch of snow, that comes half way up your leg… and it's bright inside, too. All lit up, but there aren't any lanterns or torches, it's just light… and farther below, in another cavern, the floor is made of ice… it's very cold in all of these caverns..."
There was a long pause. Everyone watching was baffled and bewildered, even Meowth, but the twerps' doubt of the truthfulness of the story grew quickly. After a minute had passed, Brock, May, and Max all burst out laughing, and their Pokémon did the same. James looked confused, but quite embarrassed. The laughter continued for a moment or two. Brock finally was able to calm down enough to say sarcastically, "Yeah, a cavern filled with snow that's all lit up? That's a nice story. It's almost as nice as that one you told about the little boy that dies out in the snow while his Growlithe howls by his side the whole night." The laughter continued. May and Max didn't know what Brock was talking about, but James certainly did. It had happened such a long time ago, but James' face grew a dark crimson red at the thought of the story where the little boy had supposed to be himself. (James hadn't meant to get so carried away in his drama, but it had come so naturally to him. He did remember, though, that he had told it so well that Brock and Ash, and Jesse and Meowth, had begun to cry and bawl sadly, "James is dead!" …until Misty pointed out that James was standing right in front of them telling the story and, therefore, could not be dead.)
Amidst the laughter, Jesse slowly raised her head up from her hands and glanced around. James was looking quite downcast, and Meowth still looked confused. Jesse felt quite angry for a moment. If the twerps believe any of us, they ought to believe James. He's the honest one of our group. "He's right," Jesse spoke up, slowly getting to her feet, and everyone's attention immediately snapped to her, "He's telling the truth. At this moment, there are three caverns underneath us, one on top of the other, which you get through by falling down holes. All of them are filled with snow, but the last one also has a floor of ice. It's bright in there, I don't know how, but it is. You three better believe James, too." She growled her last sentence, as her two partners stood up beside her nervously.
"Why should we believe you three?" Brock questioned, standing up from Onix. He walked over to stand with May, Max, Pikachu, Togepi, and Poochyena.
"Didn't yous all ready ask thats question?" Meowth muttered under his breath.
"Well, I guess it could make sense," Max interjected thoughtfully, petting Poochyena's ears, "under certain circumstances… Did you two see any Pokémon down there, by any chance?"
"A Sneasel," Jesse and James chorused at the same time.
"Well," Max could see in his mind the first page on Sneasels in the Dark-type book he was reading, "there could definitely be a substantial amount of snow if a Sneasel used multiple attacks like Icy Wind or Blizzard, which it most certainly can do, but that wouldn't account for the light, since a Sneasel can't learn Flash and that's my guess on how these caverns could be lit up without any visible source. However, if a Sneasel can live down there, then other Pokémon certainly can, and some other Ice-types like Snorunt can use Flash."
As May and Brock were still looking doubtful, James resolved that it was time to tell the twerps the whole truth. "They're down there," he muttered quietly to the ground underneath his feet, "…The Ma-… Ash and Misty are down there, in the last cavern."
Brock, May, Max, and the Pokémon all went deathly silent. The hush that enclosed them was a very tense one. Slowly, Max was able to utter the word, "Huh?" incredulously, just under his breath, but everyone heard it clear as day.
Meowth stared up at his partners, quite stunned, as Jesse slowly placed a hand on James' shoulder, trying to get him to understand that he should continue. James drew up a breath, released it, and then started again. "Ash and Misty are in the last cavern down there, but…" James felt the angrily glaring eyes of twenty-one people and Pokémon on him, and he knew that with everything he had to say, it was only going to get worse. "…they're…" He felt his eyes tearing up again, and he hated it. "…they're…"
Jesse knew that her sensitive partner was never going to be able to finish his sentence, no matter how hard he tried. "Gone." Her sapphire eyes stared up at the twerps blankly. "They're gone. They're… dead."
Brock, May, Max, Meowth, and the Pokémon all went deathly silent again, but this time the hush had a frighteningly stunned feel to it. May's eyebrows went together, as if she couldn't understand. Pikachu slowly put one front paw to his mouth, while taking a mystified Togepi by the hand with the other paw. Max blinked, then his caramel eyes grew wide behind his black-framed glasses. Brock didn't move, and was as still as a statue. Jesse glanced around at all of the Pokémon encircling them, and they were all stunned silent, too. "They're dead," Jesse repeated, her voice on the verge of cracking, "They're dead. Their… bodies are lying down there in the last cavern, on the ice. They're… gone."
"They…" James whispered slowly into the silence, "…were… murdered. Murdered. Ash and Misty were killed by… this… evil… Pokémon. We… Jesse and I were almost killed, too. The… thing came after us, too, when we saw their bodies, but we… managed to get out, I don't know how. It killed them… It… murdered them…"
"…No Pokémon has the will to kill," Max muttered factually to himself, completely unable to think emotionally yet, as he still could not believe that Ash and Misty were gone. However, as if to contradict his statement, an image of a monstrous Groundon on the ground far underneath of him as he rode a Flygon would not leave his mind.
The silence continued after that, so James continued too.
"…We know that… they're not just unconscious… because they're… ghosts… Yes… ghosts… We didn't see them because they're invisible, of course, but… they took us to their bodies… They dragged us all of the way to their bodies… so… they're dead."
The silence continued. Slowly and somberly, everyone in the meadow, person and Pokémon and twerp and Rocket member alike, turned to look at Brock. Brock had his arms crossed and was staring down at the ground, no expression on his face. He could see out of the corners of his eyes May and Max, whose moisture-filled sapphire and caramel eyes stared up at him blankly, looking to him for what to say or do or think or feel. Brock knew he was the adult again, the one who was responsible for his friends, the one who made the ultimate decision, just as he had been last night. Besides May and Max, he could also see Pikachu, holding onto little Togepi's paw, staring up at him, completely numb with disbelief, eyes tearing up quickly.
Gravely, Brock looked up at Jesse and James, and all eyes went to them instead. "What kind of Pokémon?" His voice was strong but wavering, emotionless but hurt, but over it all, his voice was determined. This sent a needed wave of resilience through the other twerps and all of their Pokémon.
Jesse spoke for James, who had become unable to speak again. "…A Haunter."
Brock thought for a moment, then gave a brisk nod. The Flying-types that had been resting on Onix's back fluttered back up into the air as Brock silently recalled all of his Pokémon back into their Pokéballs. Jesse, James, and Meowth all dodged the beams of light as May and Max, who followed Brock's lead without question, recalled May's, Misty's, and Ash's Pokémon, too. Poochyena was even recalled into his Pokéball by Max, which only happened very rarely. This left only Togepi, who was swept off of the ground by May, and Pikachu, who raced up to sit on Max's shoulder, out with the humans of their group. Brock started towards the hole, and had gotten halfway there before anyone realized what he was doing.
At the sound of a thump, Brock glanced quickly over at Team Rocket to see that James had swung his backpack off of his back and was pulling out three Escape Ropes. Brock paused, then walked purposely over to them. Emerald eyes staring into onyx ones, James laid the Escape Ropes in Brock's hands, and muttered quietly, "You'll need these."
Jesse, who quietly had placed a hand on James' shoulder, muttered, "There's heavy snow at the bottom of the hole, so it's well padded." Brock nodded mutely, pausing for only a moment to place the Escape Ropes in his own backpack, then headed purposely back over to the hole, May and Max following close behind.
When he got to the edge, he stared down into the giant, gaping, pitch black hole without any fear at all. Holding tightly to the straps of his backpack, Brock took a deep breath, let it out, then stepped off the edge. May gave a small gasp as Brock disappeared down the hole, for she hadn't been perfectly aware of what he had been going to do, but Max had been. Max waited for a moment or two, and then, when Pikachu had climbed into his arms and snuggled his cold black nose into Max's green polo shirt, stepped off the edge of the hole with only a little hesitation. His throat let out a small scream, but he choked it back by burying his face into Pikachu's golden fur, as the darkness flew up around him and the wind of his descent sent his black hair flying everywhere.
May gave an even bigger gasp as her younger brother's yelp echoed back up the hole. She stared down into the hole for a few long moments, very frightened, and Togepi gave off an anxious chirp in her arms. She glanced down, her eyebrows furrowed helplessly, at Togepi, then looked up at Jesse, James, and Meowth, who were all watching her carefully. May definitely did not want to be alone with Team Rocket, so shutting her eyes good and tight, she pulled Togepi closer and jumped, screaming loudly before her second foot had left the ground. She disappeared as quick as the others, but it was another moment or two before her scream became silent.
Jesse and James were still for a moment, then James swung his backpack up onto his back and they both turned away from the hole simultaneously. Meowth, with a look of confusion and uneasiness on his face, glanced up at his partners leaving and shouted to their backs quickly, "You's was just sayings all of thats, right? That ain't trues, right?" Jesse and James stopped, then James glanced over his shoulder at the cat.
"No." Meowth felt a cold chill run through his furry body. He couldn't believe the words his friends had just recounted. But the Twerp… the Main Twerp never dies… no matter whats, he never dies… Meowth paused, then quickly followed Jesse and James as they left the meadow wordlessly, heading back through the woods of Route 119 to a grove of trees where their hot air balloon had been staked down while they went off to stalk Pikachu.
The breath was almost knocked out of Brock when he finally hit ground, but Jesse had not lied; the snow that Brock landed in cushioned his impact immensely. Brock quickly breathed in and out for a short moment, then scrambled into a sitting position. After a pause, he gave a small gasp, glancing around. …They… they were telling the truth…these are caverns. Silver marble-patterned cavern walls loomed up jaggedly in front of him and behind him, and his pants were already soaking up the cold snow.
Suddenly, Max appeared, falling from the hole in the cathedral-arch ceiling high above Brock, and the boy landed back-down, still holding Pikachu tightly, into a snow bank to Brock's right, scattering flurries, blocking him from Brock's sight for a moment. Max sat up stiffly, like Frankenstein's monster rising from his lab table, and made all of his unruly hair fall in front of his glasses. Pikachu peeked out from his sanctuary of the polo shirt with wide round eyes. Max blew at the sheet of long bangs that had formed over his face, but after it lifted at the ends, it only fell back into place. Nevertheless, he must have seen Brock looking at him through his hair, for he gave a thumbs-up sign.
Brock slowly got to his feet, his balance corrupted by a small bit of dizziness, and Max scrambled onto his feet, too, Pikachu leaping out of his arms into the snow that almost swallowed him up. A sound reached Brock's ears, though he was a bit slow to notice it, but when he did, he perked up immediately at the quickly crescendoing scream. May! Brock looked up at the ceiling quickly, and as a shrieking figure came into view falling down towards him. Frantically, Brock held both of his arms out in front of him, bracing himself and keeping his eyes locked on the figure.
"AHHHH-" With a great "UMPH!" sound that cut off her scream, a terrified May landed square in Brock's waiting arms. The added weight made Brock unbalance, and after a short wobble and yelp of surprise, he fell backwards off of his feet, bringing May down with him. Flurries of snow gushed up on every side of them as they landed in the snow bank, and the only thing that could be seen above the pile of flurries were their legs sticking up into the air crookedly. An unscathed Togepi had leaped out of May's arms as May and Brock fell, and landed in Pikachu's arms, for the electric mouse had been waiting to catch the baby Pokémon as Brock had waited to catch May. Max missed the entire fiasco, as he had been struggling to get his hair to return to its regular position.
Max adjusted his glasses, then turned around to face the assembled group, Pikachu holding a bewildered Togepi high above his head and the snow bank, and May and Brock slowly sitting up, May rubbing her head woozily and Brock muttering dully, "Ow… Ow…Ow…" Max sighed.
When the stars had stopped going off in front of May's eyes, she shook her head one last time and glanced over at Brock, who face was quite close, in mild surprise. "Oh…" she muttered, blinking, "Thank you, Brock."
"Sure," Brock managed to mutter through a light headache, rubbing his head himself, "You're welcome. Any time." May nodded frankly. She sat still for a moment, as it made her head clear faster. It took her a moment before she saw Max roll his eyes, but she didn't understand why he was until Brock muttered, "Uh, May? Uh… could you let me up?"
May glanced down and turned red as a beet when she saw that she was sitting in Brock's lap. "Oh!" She struggled to stand up quickly, but in her haste, she kept falling back into his lap. Brock finally held out one hand and helped her up as best as he could, and she was able to stand all of the way up. "Sorry, Brock!"
Max assisted Brock in getting up out of the snow bank, and Brock shook flurries out of his spiky hair. Pikachu leaped onto Max's shoulder again, and gazed around in awe at the snowy silver cavern that they had landed in. Brock and Max were gaping at their surroundings, too, and when May finally had the courage to look up, she and Togepi were also awestruck by the environment. The five were motionless for a moment, standing close together in a huddle, only their eyes moving around to take in the cavern.
Suddenly, Max's conscious mind snapped back on, and he realized the graveness of their situation. He himself couldn't really believe that Ash and Misty could be gone forever, so even though Jesse and James had been right about everything so far, he kept telling himself that they might have mistaken unconsciousness for death, and that there had been no ghosts of Ash and Misty. Max didn't even know if he believed in ghosts or not, besides Ghost- type Pokémon anyway. "Come on," he growled solemnly, staring out at the grotto in front of them. He knew which way to go, as Jesse and James' trail was still marked in the snow by footprints. May and Brock glanced down at the young boy, their faces slowly growing solemn, too. With a nod each, they slowly started to make their way down that snowy cavern, letting Max lead the way with Brock behind him and May behind Brock.
After a minute or two, Brock, May, and Max were just visible from far down the cavern hallway near the ceiling, if one was up that high. But in fact, two were.
"Ash! Look!" Misty whispered in the left ear of her soulmate, her new 'boyfriend'. She was holding tightly onto his arm as they floated near the ceiling, just underneath of the stalactites, but not because she was afraid of the height or anything. She simply wanted to hold onto him. Being a ghost made her feel like she was in a dream, and the love that Ash had so sweetly confessed for her was what dreams were made of, so she didn't want to believe she was in a dream. Besides, Misty thought, staring up at Ash's profile face, there's no way, no possible way, that we could… really die forever. I mean… Ash has never died, after all of the things he's been through… it's like he can't die… and I know he wouldn't leave me behind if he got back in his body… We just can't die…
Ash put his left arm around the shoulders of his new 'girlfriend' solemnly and pulled her close. He felt very somber at the moment, something that Ash seldom was if he didn't have to be, and he didn't like feeling this way. He wanted to feel happy, and joyfully, because he had found that he had been missing something he never knew he was missing until he finally had it. He narrowed his eyes, gazing down at the figures that were so slowly coming into view. The splotches of color that they made against the white snowy canvas were almost dazzling. After a moment, the yellow spot on the top of the first figure 'leaped' off into the snow, and started to 'bound' ahead of the others through the snow. Ash's eyes widened a bit. "It's… Pikachu…" Ash muttered to himself, then glanced at Misty, a desperate look on his face, "It's them! It's our group!"
With a gasp, Misty glanced back down at the three figures (and the Pikachu-looking one) making their way through the snow drifts. "It is! …It just has to be Brock and Max… and May." Misty held onto Ash's arm tighter when she spoke May's name, as if trying to keep Ash from thinking anything about the brown-haired girl. Misty knew in the deepest part of her heart that May could never take Ash away from her now, but that wasn't why she still felt resentful. She felt upset because May had a well-known stubborn streak a mile long, and if she wanted something, contest ribbon or otherwise, she would do anything to get it. Misty still considered May a threat, but a different kind now.
"I can't believe they actually got down here," Ash marveled quietly, shaking his head, "I mean, we hoped and prayed that they would, but I thought… it would be too much if they actually did."
"I know," Misty acquiesced. "But they are here, so let's see if we can get their attention and get them down to the last cavern. Sableye said we don't have a lot of time left before," she glanced down at her ghostly body, "this is all… permanent."
"Yeah, we need to get their attention, but maybe we ought to be, I dunno, less forceful, don't you think, in bringing them down there? I think we probably scared Jesse and James half to death."
"Perhaps just picking them up and flying them along was too surprising," Misty wondered in retrospect.
"Well, let's go down there, at least, and see what we can do," Ash decided. Misty nodded, and leaned on Ash's shoulder a bit harder, snuggling into it. Ash's cheeks darkened a bit, and he giggled, the slightest bit of nervousness in his voice. Misty laughed genuinely, which made Ash shed most of his tension. To Misty, it seemed as though that now they were back in (a strange kind of) reality, and not in the ethereal cavern of the million-color crystalfall, Ash felt more conscious about his affection for Misty and felt a bit more anxious about showing it. Right at that moment, he probably would've had reserves about kissing her, when he had no hesitation back in the otherworldly place. However, she knew in time that Ash would learn not to worry about such things. Oh, Ash, Misty thought, smiling to herself, you're so hopeless!
Max somberly watched Pikachu bounding through the snow in front of him. The electric mouse would leap into the snow bank ahead and disappear, then reappear as he leaped until he disappeared in the next snow bank. Max could hear the sound of snow sloshing around where Brock and May were walking behind him. He held tightly onto the straps of his and Ash's backpacks, which were slung across his back. His face would have been unreadable to anyone if they had glanced at it. His mouth was frowning, but it was just in replace of a smile, and not for anger. His eyes were emotionless, only blinking faintly behind his glasses. The reason for this was that he wasn't sure what to think or what to do, for he didn't know if he would have to be sad or happy at the end of all of this. He didn't show any emotion because he was afraid that it could be the wrong emotion, or that it would give away how sensitive he felt. It was just better to be frowning and emotionless and silent when he didn't know what to make of the world.
Suddenly, the hairs on the back of Max's neck stood up as he felt a prickly feeling run across his skin. The frigid snow was already burning into his bare legs, almost up to his knees, but this new feeling was very different from that. He stopped walking immediately and stood as still and as stiff as a Xatu, only his caramel eyes darting back and forth anxiously, unable to locate what he sought to find, to see. Brock and May both stopped behind him, curious but wary at his frozen position. Pikachu stopped bounding through the snow when he glanced back a few yards away and saw Max being so still.
"I…" Max whispered, but trailed off, never really intending to finish his sentence. Because he couldn't see Max's face, Brock wondered if Max was on the verge of crying or something, and thought that perhaps Max was going to say something about Ash and Misty. Max stayed quiet. May was about to ask her little brother what was wrong, but suddenly, she didn't seem to have the courage to break the silence. It seemed that no one wanted to do that, either. Even Togepi didn't chirp. Then, out of the blue, Pikachu's ears stuck straight up in the air, his eyes widened enormously, and his fur stood on end. A look of fear and horror crossed his face, and suddenly, with an apprehensive cry of alarm, he flew in great bounds across the snow that separated him from the rest of the group and hugged onto Max's leg tightly when he got there. Glancing down at Pikachu trying to look small and insignificant, the stationary Max knew that Pikachu had felt the same presence nearby as he had. After glancing around the cavern again, Max whispered, "I… I think… we're not… alone." He paused, then whispered lower, "Something else is here."
The souls of Ash and Misty heard what Max said as they glided down to float next to their living friends. "Yes!" Ash choked out desperately, though knowing that they wouldn't be able to hear him, just as Jesse and James hadn't heard them, "Yes! Something else is here! It's us! It's Ash and Misty! We're here!" Pikachu gave a long low whine, as if he knew that the 'something else' had spoken, and his tiny claws sunk into Max's leg so hard that Max had to bite his lip so as to not cry out.
"Ugh…" May muttered fearfully to herself at Pikachu's whine, and sidestepped so that she was closer to the older protective Brock. It was then that Misty noticed whom May was holding. May, the girl that Misty knew was an absolute threat, was clutching tightly but gently onto Misty's little baby, her precious Togepi. Misty felt her temper rising immediately. She had the sudden urge to kick May in the leg, for the girl would have no idea that Misty had done it, but she didn't want to have to explain that vicious action to her soulmate, who certainly would know who had done it. What was worse, Misty considered angrily, was that Togepi didn't seem to mind that May was carrying her, and not Misty.
Ash glanced over at Misty and saw her angry glare directed at May. He recognized immediately that it was because May was holding Togepi, remembering his conversation with Misty on the crystalfall before his confession. Ash still didn't understand why Misty seemed to dislike May so much, but understanding that was for another time and place. "Mist?" Ash called softly, and Misty twitched in surprise and turned to him swiftly. "How should we get their attention, if we aren't going to pick them up like we did Team Rocket?" Misty frowned thoughtfully, and shrugged, still thinking.
"Maybe…" Brock was whispering quietly to May and Max, trying not to disturb whatever could be out there, "…we should get out some of our Pokémon out, in case we need, uh…" he glanced at May's highly fretful face, "…a bit of, uh, protection. Just in case." Max nodded, and May gulped, but still, she nodded in acquiescence herself. Brock fingered his five Pokéballs, wondering which would be the best against a strange phantom. May fingered her two Pokéballs and Misty's five, wondering whether just to send all seven of them out against a strange phantom, or run screaming back down the cavern hallway. Max fingered Poochyena's Pokéball and Ash's four, wondering which of Ash's Pokémon were in which, for he had forgotten already.
"Uh, Brock," Max whispered out of the side of his mouth, not looking at the Pokémon breeder, "which is which?" He gestured at Ash's belt, which hung loosely from his waist, at Ash's four Pokéballs.
"Treecko, Bayleef, Noctowl, then Corphish," Brock reminded him quickly in a whisper, "and don't forget you have Pikachu, too." Pikachu whined, wishing he really had been forgotten. Despite the precautions taken by the group in the form of whispering, Ash and Misty still heard every word that they had said.
"Oh, no…" the soul Misty mumbled anxiously, then glanced over at Ash, wide-eyed, "I hope they d- don't really s- set our own Pokémon on us!"
"Well, I d- don't think our Pokémon would be able to s- s- see us, either, though they m- might sense us, if they can't."
"Yeah, I guess n- n- not. Only Ghost- types can see other g- g- ghosts."
Ash nodded. "That's r- right. Except for, you know…" There was a pause as Ash's eyes suddenly grew wide in thought, then in surprised bliss. "…THAT'S IT!"
"…All right," May was breathing in short, small gasps as she held the seven Pokéballs in one hand and Togepi in her other arm. Pikachu had now gone to May to hide behind her. May's voice had gone squeaky. "… All right… Whenever you're ready, Brock… Any time…"
"Okay," Brock answered quietly, not completely confident himself, gathering his Pokéballs into his hand. Max, Poochyena's Pokéball already in hand, was plucking the Pokéballs one by one off of Ash's belt when he felt something strange while reaching for the third Pokéball. Something didn't exactly feel right. Max glanced down innocently at the Pokéball he had been reaching for, and felt his heart suddenly start to race. The Pokéball wasn't attached to the belt; it was floating in midair, not even close to the belt, without any visible support. The prickly feeling ran across Max's skin again, and a look of disbelieving fear came over his face. After trembling in his spot for a moment, Max suddenly let out a scream and dashed away from where the Pokéball was floating.
"GHOSTS!" he yelped, forgetting that he wasn't sure if he believed in ghosts or not, as Brock and May gasped in fear upon seeing the floating red-and-white sphere. Max immediately took cover behind his sister, joining Pikachu, scattering snow everywhere as he tried to run fast through the thick drifts. May glanced around in horror, not looking for whatever was holding the Pokéball, but looking for a place to hide. Brock braced himself, his heart pounding faster than he could ever remember. He had a very troubled thought. Is this… the Haunter that Jesse and James said was down here?
"Ash," Misty frowned in confusion as she floated over to him. Ash was holding onto the Pokéball he had taken off of the belt around Max's waist, one of his own Pokéballs. He was holding it tightly in both hands, glancing down at it in mixed hope and desperation. "Ash," Misty repeated, holding onto Ash's right arm, "I thought we weren't going to scare them."
"This," Ash muttered without glancing at her, gesturing with the Pokéball, "could be our one shot. It could be our last hope." He glanced up at the ghost girl, hanging onto his arm trustingly, and prayed that his obscure idea would work …for her sake, not mine… Suddenly, with a great ghostly throw, Ash flung the Pokéball high into the air. Brock, May, and Max watching in alarmed astonishment as the Pokéball stopped levitating and seemingly careened high into the air without any force behind it. At the arching peak of the Pokéball's path, the sphere suddenly burst open on its hinges, letting out a flash of light that slowly materialized into a Pokémon. The Pokéball fell down towards the ground, and the ghost Ash caught it, throwing to Max in the same movement. The young boy let out another yelp as the missile headed towards him for no visible reason, but caught it in the nick of time just the same. Max glanced up, along with his sister and Brock, at the Pokémon hovering in the air above their heads.
"Noctowl?" the three standing stupefied in the snow questioned as one. The Shiny Owl Pokémon looked as confused as Brock, May, and Max to be out of his Pokéball, especially in a strange snowy cathedral-arched cavern. He flapped his wings uncertainly, glancing up, down, and around at the new setting. He hooted quietly, and spiraled down a bit closer to the snow-covered floor, away from the threatening stalactites.
Misty was wondering the same thing as the rest of the group until she heard Ash began to shout an attack command at Noctowl repeatedly. Of course, Ash knew that Noctowl couldn't hear him, but he hoped desperately that the Owl would get the message one way or another. Misty realized what Ash's plan had been as Ash yelled, "NOCTOWL! FORESIGHT! FORESIGHT, NOCTOWL! FORSIGHT, FORESIGHT, FORESIGHT!"
"Of course," Misty muttered quietly to herself, "Noctowl's Foresight attack. It helps him identify an unknown opponent, AND makes a Ghost- type unable to disappear… or… makes a ghost appear if you can't see it!" Misty's eyes grew wide in hope. Ash may have just found the perfect way to help us out! Oh, Ho-oh… I hope Foresight works on people-ghosts, too!
"Why would …something let one of our Pokémon out?" Brock questioned himself in a whisper, "Or why did it let Noctowl out specifically? How did it know that Noctowl was in that Pokéball? Why?"
Max peeked out from around May's violently trembling legs, and whined, "Ghosts! Oh, why does it have to be ghosts! We can't see ghosts, so why does it always have to be ghosts!"
"That's… IT!" Brock said suddenly. It most certainly had to be a ghost, Brock now believed, though he wasn't sure if it could be this Haunter he was warned of. He wasn't sure why it would have let out Noctowl, either, but he did know what he should do since whatever it was had. "Noctowl!" Brock shouted up at the Shiny Pokémon. The bird glanced over at the breeder, very willing to listen to anyone, as he didn't know what to do himself. "Use your Foresight attack on the cavern area in front of us!"
"Yes!" Ash shouted triumphantly. He floated up into the area where Brock had called for Noctowl's attack to be aimed and hovered there. Misty immediately glided up beside him, and they smiled at each other, nervous and hopeful that this would work.
Noctowl nodded obediently to Brock's order, then concentrating hard, he focused his pupils upon his target area and his eyes lit up bright red. Wide red beams of light shot from Noctowl's eyes and they swept the height and width of the cavern slowly, coating it in an eerie glow.
"Of course!" Max muttered, irritated at himself, "I should have known to have one of our Pokémon try Foresight!"
"Uh," May whispered, taking her eyes away from the glowing scene only a moment to glance at her brother, "…What's Foresight?"
Brock watched intently, and after a few very long moments, two smudges seemed to appear in the red light, growing slowly clearer. Seeing that his attack was getting back some results, Noctowl focused harder on his attack than he ever had before. Ash felt a strange feeling come over his soul as the red aura swept over him. He hadn't been able to feel cold, hunger, or pain since he had last been in his body (though he had definitely felt his kiss with Misty, since she was a ghost, too), but now he started to feel something that, if Ash remembered correctly, could just possibly be heat, or a slight warm sensation. Misty felt this, too, and like Ash, she also began to feel a very slight pull on her soul towards the ground, a very minute bit of the work of gravity.
The group on the ground watched in a strange kind of fascination as the two smudges began to take shape. Slowly, it was visible to Brock, May, Max, Pikachu, and Togepi (the latter of whom didn't really get what was going on) that the two smudges each had two arms, two legs, and a head: human forms. "Foresight," Max whispered to May, who had already forgotten her question, "basically makes ghosts, which are invisible, visible."
As the two human forms, floating high in the air, sharpened, May began to feel more afraid. Soon, it was very apparent that the two forms must be ghosts, and when this certainty was reached for the coordinator, she could stand still no longer. May ran for it, taking cover behind Brock, shrieking, "…I SEE DEAD PEOPLE!" Max and Pikachu were left out in the open, so they quickly mimicked May and dove behind Brock for protection. Brock chucked nervously and desperately. Both literally and figuratively, he thought, I'm sure glad my whole group is here to, uh… back me up. Guess it's too bad they don't stand beside me, then.
Noctowl could not hold his attack any longer. The red aura disappeared, and the bird flapped his wings rigidly and hooted in exhaustion. He landed awkwardly in the snow, and sunk down a few inches into the cold, unpleasant flurries. Despite the disappearance of the red light, Foresight's effects were still working their magic upon the souls of Ash and Misty. May, holding Togepi, peeked out cautiously at the appearing ghosts on one side of Brock, and Max and Pikachu peeked out from around Brock's other side.
Their outlines were solidly visible, but the details of Ash and Misty's body came last. First, the details of their shoes appeared, then their legs and jeans, then their shirts, and finally, their faces and hair. The details spread up their soul bodies like the fine onyx pigment of calligraphy inked from bottom to top. Ash had closed his eyes as he felt the aura warm him and weigh him down. He opened them promptly as new sensations came upon his soul as their visible details completed. Now, the warmth disappeared, replaced by the very faintest traces of the chill that comes of overexposure to frigid snow. Also, Ash began to feel the slightest twinge of what must be pain in his chest. When Ash thought over all he had done that day, when he had been in his body, he realized the pain must be from the Night Shade attack that Haunter had used on him to knock him unconscious and steal his soul away. Out of the corner of his eye, Ash saw Misty gently put a hand to the gash that Haunter's missile stalactite had cut into her skin to knock her unconscious before he had attacked Ash. It obviously had given off the slightest twinge of a painful shock, too.
Slowly, Ash glanced down at the rest of his traveling party standing in the snowy banks below, and felt himself become self-conscious, almost embarrassed. Though it had only been a little while (hopefully less than an hour) since he become invisible to most of the world, Ash felt strange that he could now be seen and gazed upon. Misty felt strange to be seen, too, and after a moment, wondered fretfully if any of the group had noticed that Ash wasn't the one wearing his vest.
Brock felt that his heart had just stopped, though it beat on, regardless of his numbing shock. It did quicken its thumping, however, as the sight of the pale apparitions of his lost friends met his dismal eyes. The two translucent human forms, floating over the snow, were most certainly Ash and Misty in every aspect and detail. Seeing them, however, after searching for them for a whole night and day, only chilled Brock's rapidly beating heart more than it already had been, because they were not the people he knew and cared about. They were, as James had already warned, ghosts…
May was stunned so silent that she almost forgot to breathe. It's impossible… she thought bleakly to herself, holding tight onto Brock's arm with the hand that wasn't holding Togepi, … It's impossible that they could be… ghosts… No! They can't be! They just can't! They… they… aren't allowed to die! They can't yet! There's too many things that they haven't done! Ash hasn't helped my brother catch a Pokémon yet, and hasn't helped me learn all I can learn from him about how to be partners with Pokémon! I need to tell Misty that I'm not in love with her Ash, 'cause she hasn't even become my friend yet, and there is so much that we haven't done together! This… this just can't be!
Max didn't think at all, for the first few seconds. There is nothing to think, after all, until a person can register in their mind that something they don't want to believe is true. When his mind finally gave in to the facts that seemed to be staring him right in the face, he still wasn't able to think clearly, for too many thoughts rushed into his head at one time to be able to think logically. He watched dazedly, both hands gripping tightly onto Brock's vest, as the Ash ghost smiled, almost apologetically, and waved at them slightly, mouthing the word, "Hi." The Misty ghost smiled faintly, too, glancing over at the Ash ghost, then back at the group in the snow, her hands clasped together in front of her.
Ash and Misty, after the strange novelty of ghostly visibility wore off a bit, swiftly realized that their appearance had not excited their friends as they had somewhat believed that it would. The three humans and Pikachu all wore expressions of surprise and fear, but most of all, of sorrow and grief. Eyes wide, eyebrows furrowed, and mouth hung open in dumb shock, the living people and creatures stared up, silent and motionless, at the two ghosts floating in front of them.
Suddenly, Max broke down into a frightened sob. His knees buckled weakly underneath him and he slid down so his knees were on the ground. He gripped Brock's pants leg tightly, leaning against him for support as his caramel eyes began to trickle out silent tears like a leaky faucet. Pikachu, who had been standing just in front of Max, backed up next to the young boy and gripped the leg of Max's own dark brown shorts in horrified distress, pulling himself close in order to gain and provide as much frail comfort as he could. Abruptly, Max let out another great sob, burying his head in Pikachu's golden fur, and wailed in a muffled voice, "They're dead! They really are dead! Oh, they're dead!"
In a quiet, desperate murmur, May whispered, "Oh my Ho-Oh. Oh my Ho-Oh, no. Oh, my Ho-Oh," a phrase that she had intentionally picked up from Misty. She felt weak in the knees, too, and had to lean heavily against Brock to remain standing. She felt her sapphire eyes misting over, and buried her face in Brock's arm. Brock simply stared up at the ghosts, the ghosts of his two oldest friends, and shook his head slightly, disbelieving. Then he became still, as his two youngest friends sobbed around him, and watched the faces of the ghosts become perplexed and almost frightened themselves. Brock had never felt comfortable with the idea of ghosts, for he had experienced some bad things involving ghosts in the past, but nevertheless, these were ghosts of Ash and Misty, and nothing to be uncomfortable with. So he spoke to them, for none of the others had done so yet.
"…Ash? …Misty?" Both of them looked at Brock straight in the eyes as he muttered their names, obviously confused as to why the others were crying. "…you two… you're… you're… you're… dead…" As his choked voice trailed off, he saw the confusion on their faces grow more. Then, Ash did something that almost made Brock's heart stop again: he shook his head negatively. After a very long pause, Brock whispered, "…What?" and Ash shook his head again, Misty joining him this time. "…But you're… ghosts…" Ash nodded reluctantly. "…So… you're dead…" Misty shook her head so fast that it made her short loose hair fly about in an ethereal breeze. "…You're …alive?" Both instantly nodded. Brock felt a bit of his numbness go away, as he stared into the two pairs of widened soul eyes. They certainly would not say they were alive unless they really were. They wouldn't lie.
Neither May nor Max, nor Pikachu or Togepi (the latter of whom still didn't understand what was going on) had seen or really heard Brock's 'conversation' with the souls of Ash and Misty. Suddenly, Brock shook both of the pairs that were hanging tightly onto him. "You guys! May, Max, Pikachu! Didn't you see? They said that they aren't dead! Ash and Misty said they're alive!" All four instantly stared up in high shock at the two floating souls.
"…But," Max managed to choke out, squinting at the two ghosts through a waterfall of tears, "…they're ghosts… so they can't be alive." Ash shook his head. "…But… how can that be?"
Ash looked as if he was about to try to explain, when Misty muttered to him, "Ash, we can't try to do that now. We'll have to tell them later, when we get out of this mess." Ash turned back to Max, and instead, shrugged.
"So… you're really alive?" May whispered hopefully. Ash nodded, wondering mildly what it would take to get the fact through all of their heads, and May smiled so gleefully that Misty couldn't help grinning the tiniest bit that the younger girl would be so glad to hear such news. Then, Misty frowned. …Well, of course, maybe she's just glad that Ash may be still alive! Oooo, I just can't stand her! What am I going to do?
"I… I don't believe it," Max marveled aloud, vigorously wiping away tears from under his glasses lenses, but it sounded very much as if he did want to believe it. He quickly stood up, and Pikachu jumped onto Max's shoulder.
The electric mouse had such a mix of surprise and sadness and hope on his face that it made his ghostly master laugh softly. Suddenly, a look of understanding came across his little sweet face. "Pika Pi! Pikachupi!" he called out Ash and Misty's names excitedly. Ash realized that Pikachu must have guessed what had happened to them for them to be ghosts but be alive. After all, Pikachu had experienced the same thing, along with Ash, in Lavender Town. From May's arms, Togepi trilled, and held out her tiny hands for Misty, giving Misty a bit of smug pleasure.
Brock could tell that the entire group now believed that Ash and Misty were alive, but he didn't understand how they could be. "…But Ash, Misty, how can you be alive? We met Jesse and James from Team Rocket, and they said that they had seen your… dead bodies. They said that a… that a Haunter had… murdered you…" Both ghosts' eyes widened, and they slowly nodded. Brock felt a bit more fearful than before. A Pokémon… that really wants to kill someone?
"…Ash!" Misty said quickly, turning to him, "We might not have much time left! We have to take them down to the last cavern! …NOW!" Ash nodded firmly.
"Then, what did this Haunter do to make you ghosts, but alive? Rip your souls out of your bodies or something?" Max grumbled in bewilderment. Both Ash and Misty nodded quickly, and Pikachu nodded, too. Max was quite surprised that his first suggestion must have been right, and a bit more surprised that Pikachu seemed to know what had happened, too. From the strange look that May sent him, she was obviously baffled and skeptical. "It could happen, May! Ghost- types, along with Dark- types and Psychic- types, have always been the most mysterious Pokémon in the world. No one knows all of the things that those types of Pokémon can do, especially the creepy Ghost- types, like a Haunter!" The look on Brock's face made it clear that he had decided to believe the ghosts. After all, Ash just never really died, and he certainly wouldn't let Misty die, Brock knew for sure.
Suddenly, the group on the ground noticed that Ash and Misty were looking very flustered and anxious. Ash was waving his hand wildly, gesturing towards that area of the snow cavern that the living group hadn't yet seen. Misty tapped her wrist where a watch would be, if she wore one. It was obvious that they wanted to go on down the cavern, and do so quickly. "Where are we going?" Brock asked, "Jesse and James said that your… bodies were in 'the last cavern' or something. Are we going there?" Ash and Misty nodded.
"What about that Haunter?" Max questioned loudly. With a small smile, Misty jabbed a fist into an open palm aggressively, just like her normal hostile self. "Great!" Max had a determined, enthusiastic, and fierce look on his face, "Let me at that fiend! NOBODY messes with MY friends! I'll take 'em down!" He grabbed a Pokéball out, enlarged it, and threw it into the air. "Let's go! Poochyena!" The wolf pup appeared in the snow, but he almost disappeared underneath the flurries. Only the tips of his ears were showing at first. "Come on, Poochy! Let's go kick a Ghost- type's butt!" Poochyena leaped up, barking enthusiastically, then disappeared back down into the snow. Returning the slightly worn-out Noctowl to his Pokéball, Max started trudging quickly through the snowdrifts towards Ash and Misty, Pikachu leaping down into the snow with Poochyena and leaping through the snowdrifts with the pup.
"But you know," May shouted up to Max following the ghosts of Ash and Misty, who were turned around and gliding down the hallway, "that you're not really allowed to battle! You're not a trainer yet!"
"We're going to need Poochyena's help if we end up battling a Haunter," Brock told May quickly, "Dark- types are the only type that are very strong against Ghost- types, and Max's Pokémon is the only Dark- type that any of us have, even if he is at a pretty low level. As far as official battling goes, he really shouldn't or he could get in trouble, but battling down here against a deadly Pokémon, well…" Brock shrugged.
May shook her head in slight exasperation. "He does always get away with things that I never could," she muttered resentfully, then started trudging through the snow banks, Brock following at her heels.
The progress that the group made in the first two minutes was horribly slow compared to the rate that Jesse and James had gone at. Because May and Max were both wearing shorts, the coldness of the cavern affected how fast they could move, and both Team Rocket members had been wearing long sleeves and boots (plus, they had the incentive of getting away from a batty Sneasel, which was, at this time, no where to be found as it was taking a nap in some fissure in the cavern wall). Floating along with Ash in front of the group, Misty glanced back at the plodding going on behind them, and muttered emotionally to her ghostly partner, "Ash? What if… what if… we really do die, Ash?"
Ash looked over at her and smiled weakly. The idea had also been in his mind. Yet again, both he and Misty tried to silently console themselves in the fact that Ash had always come out of every scrape alive, and that he and Misty would do it once more (and unbeknownst to them, their traveling partners were thinking the same thing, too). However, something made him wonder if this time could just possibly not work the same way. "Well," Ash said slowly, on a lighter note, "I guess… we'll just be… dead. Hey, Mist, do 'ya reckon they'd let ghosts compete in the Hoenn League? I only need three more badges, you know."
"ASH!" Misty wailed, at Ash's kooky statement, "That's not even funny!"
In a more serious tone, Ash looked her in the eyes and muttered, "But what ever does happen, Mist, I'm always going to be here for you. I'll always be with you."
Misty couldn't help a small sentimental smile at Ash's serious but gratifying words. " 'Til death do us part'?" she joked slightly, taking her turn to make a jab at the strange situation they were in.
"I don't reckon death could do that to us, Misty," Ash said, in a wise tone that sounded very much like Max, and reached over to grab her hand for a moment. "I reckon that… death is what brought us together, so how could it possibly do the opposite now?"
"Thank you, Ash," is all that Misty knew to say. She squeezed his hand, then let it go. Their friends following them through the snow hadn't seen the affectionate handclasp, and Misty kind of wanted to keep it that way. If no one had yet given it a thought that Misty was wearing Ash's vest, Misty didn't want to draw attention to her and Ash's new relationship until such was the proper time. Facing certain death, unless the incessant sands of time's hourglass (and Haunter for that matter) were defeated, is not a good time to tell your friends that you and your best friend are now a couple.
Ash and Misty hurriedly conducted their group down the first cavern hallway until they reached the hole in the snow that led to the second cavern. After being assured by the ghosts' rough sign language that snow would cushion them if they jumped through it, Brock, Max (holding Pikachu and Poochyena), and May (holding Togepi) went down it bravely, and the two ghosts flew through the hole themselves.
It was the fourth time that Ash and Misty had been in this second cavern, the one with the only landmark being Sableye's rhyming warning scratched high on the wall, and so they weren't interested in taking their time. The journey through the second cavern was completely uneventful and silent as the ghosts rushed the rescue team as fast as the people and Pokémon's weary legs could move through such deep white flurries. Brock, May, and Max were getting increasingly fatigued. They had wandered around all day, then ran to catch Team Rocket, and now they were having to hurry through snow. Though they didn't know why they had to hurry to the 'last cavern' that Ash and Misty were taking them to, they knew that it must be important, so the group managed as best as they could.
The group on the ground only just recognized that something must be up on the wall, as they past the carved poem, for Ash and Misty didn't stop their hastening of the group for a moment. Soon, though not soon enough for Ash and Misty's liking, the group was at the edge of the hole that led to the third cavern. Ash, although he had been mostly optimistic when he had last talked to Misty, was now starting to feel what he thought was realistic, though he didn't give up, for Misty's sake. There's no way… there is just no way… not after all of the time that Mist and I spent on the crystalfall… not after all of the time getting Brock and May and Max to follow us… not after Sableye said we only had an inch or so amount of time left… We must be long gone… we must be dead… But how will I know? …Will I be able to feel myself become… dead? …Will Misty and I be ghosts forever …or will we just …fade away …like old memories?
Being valiant yet again, the rescue group gave a great leapt of faith down the hole, and then, they were in the third cavern, the grandest of them all. With its silver marble walls and deep snow down below the cliff they had landed on, the six pairs of eyes that were new to this stretch of the cavern gazed in wonder at the circular cavern, but only for a moment as they were prodded towards the edge of the cliff to their left. The group was surprised to see a long rock slide that ran halfway around the circumference of the cavern, but they were even more surprised when Ash and Misty pushed them down it with only a little warning. Screams echoed across the wide cavern as the grounded group slid rapidly down the slide. The pile that ended up at the bottom of the slide would have been more amusing if the situation had been different; Brock ended up on the bottom with May crushing him, Max crushing his sister, Poochyena sprawled atop his owner, Pikachu landed on top of the wolf pup, and Togepi sitting innocently at the very top, like the cap on a pyramid. The ghosts quickly floating down to the group as the pile untangled itself. It was necessary for the group to stop to breathe, and Ash and Misty waited anxiously for them to continue. As they paused briefly, May glanced across the cavern and saw a large, smooth rock that was wedged against the silvery wall, and something about it made her shutter.
After the moment for pausing had past, Brock led the group, with May holding Togepi again behind him and Max walking alongside Poochyena and Pikachu behind her, as Ash and Misty directed them towards the far side of the cavern. The group continued to stay silent, as thoughts wouldn't come as their energy was focused on following the two ghosts in front. Off to the left, the ghosts, people, and Pokémon followed the snowy tunnel that branched off from the main third cavern. The ones that were walking slowly began to notice that the snow was tapering off. Just as they came to that revelation, a new one hit them as they rounded a bend in the passage.
"What on Earth…" Brock whispered, as he and his friends suddenly found that they were facing a long stretch of ice that replaced the snow as a floor. Max and May found themselves muttering such quiet exclamations as "wow" and "oh, my Ho-Oh" as they gazed in wonder at the milky silver sheet. Poochyena just whined. Ash and Misty vigorously motioned for the three people and three Pokémon to continue through the tunnel, and Brock asked quickly, "Misty, is this ice really thick enough to be safe? Did you and Ash cross over on this?" Misty quickly nodded, and Brock dared to step out onto the slick surface.
The scene that resulted wasn't a pretty one. Brock ended up hanging tightly onto a stalagmite as he lay face down on the ice. Max ended up right in the middle of a sparse patch of ice and was standing there in a frozen position, knowing he would fall down if he made the smallest movement. Pikachu held quiveringly onto the top of Max's head, causing Max's black hair to once more cover his face. Poochyena was making all of the movements of running fast, but due to the nature of the ice, was running hard in one place and panting heavily at his futile effort. May was still standing but she was wobbling back and forth dangerously. Ash floated out to rescue Max first, as the boy was obviously frightened to stir even the littlest amount to get his hair out of his face. Togepi chirped in fright in May's tight hold as May's feet suddenly slipped out from under her. May yelled out in fright and closed her sapphire eyes as she felt herself falling down backwards, but suddenly, her descent stopped. May slowly opened her eyes and found that she was looking up in the surprised face of the ghost of Misty.
At first, Misty didn't know why she had decided to catch May under her arms before the girl could fall. It's just because she's holding Togepi, and I don't want my baby to get hurt, Misty thought savagely as she stared straight down at May's face, which looked upside down to her. The fleeting moment of both girls' eyes staring into the others ceased, and Misty pushed May over to a stalagmite. May quickly grabbed the stalagmite with her free hand and watched Misty watching Ash, who was helping Max over to a stalagmite. May felt a profound sorrow come over her, as she could still see the hateful look Misty had just given her. She didn't want it to be like this. She wanted to be friends. May remembered all that she wanted to tell Misty so that Misty wouldn't hate her, and decided that now had to be the time to say it, before any other bizarre thing could happen.
"Hey, Misty," May whispered, not looking at the girl who was floating at her side, but staring off into space the way she did when dreaming or did just to irritate her brother for fun. Misty's head whirled around to stare at May guardedly. May paused to adjust Togepi in her arm before continuing in a casual voice, "Don't take this the wrong way, because I don't want you to be a ghost forever, but if you are, I bet… I bet it'll be a lot better since Ash would be with you, huh?"
Misty stared at May, and wondered what on Earth had caused May to say what she just had said. She better not be saying what I think she's saying… Misty thought, feeling anger pulsating through her soul, as she figured May was getting ready to say what Misty had feared all day and the day before. However, May was really thinking the exact opposite.
Misty's silent anger, which went unnoticed by May, escalated until suddenly, May said something that made every single little fragment of her pent-up frustration, fear, and hate whoosh out of her like a collapsing bellows. "…I guess… it would be okay if I had to be with Ash as a ghost, but I'd much rather be with my own best friend, because, well, I really like him a lot, well, you know, really I love him…" She paused, seeing the confused and incredulous look on Misty's face out of the corner of her eyes, and slyly added, "…like you feel about… Ash, right?"
Misty continued to stare at May, now totally stunned for two reasons. …She… knows? May finally decided it was time to look at Misty. She smiled up at the ghost, ghostly eyes meeting sapphire ones. "Oh, you don't know him, and I never told you about him, did I? I mean, I told Brock, but I didn't tell you, and that's kind of silly, isn't it?" May paused, her eyes glimmering, as she saw a picture of her love in her mind, with his fluffy white hair and beautiful steel gray, almost silver, eyes. She knew she was ranting, and that now wasn't the best time to rant, but she felt adamant that she needed to say all of this to solve her and Misty's 'issue' now, once and for all (and the Ash ghost was still helping Poochyena get over to a stalagmite).
"His name… is Brendan Birch- Professor Birch's nephew, obviously- and oh, I love him so much. He's so clever and can get out of any mess, and loves Pokémon, too. We were only able to be close friends for a year or so because he had to move to Mossdeep City, but that time was some of the best of my life. I'd love to be able for us to travel with him, because he most certainly has to have become a trainer at the same time as me. I just want to see him again. I'm afraid to call him, though, because it's been so long and, well, …he doesn't know how I feel about him." May sighed, her eyes growing dreamy again. "I don't even have his phone number."
Misty stared up at Ash, who was helping Brock stand up, feeling lighter inside than even her ghostly body felt. She almost couldn't believe it, but she did anyway. He was completely hers, for May didn't love Ash at all. She glanced back down at May, who was staring off into space, obviously thinking about her Brendan Birch. She doesn't even know his phone number, Misty thought, and something about that fact was extremely heartbreaking. Misty knew what May was feeling, because she had felt the same thing when she had been stuck in Cerulean City, knowing that Ash, oblivious to her feelings for him, was out there somewhere and she couldn't get a hold of him against all of her desire to at least talk to him.
She looked again back up at Ash, who now knew her feelings and would always be with her, and felt very grateful. Then the weight of the situation that they were currently in hit as her eyes and Ash's connected, and they understood what the other was thinking.
They both desperately didn't want to die.
They wanted to live…
TO BE CONTINUED…
It's all coming to a head, isn't it? Well, stay tuned for Chapter 11… because we're headed for the climax! Yippie! Before you go off somewhere to wait, I have a few announcements to make. First, the website isn't ready, but it's getting there (maybe 1/3 done). Second, if you think you know Pokémon more than anyone else in the world, check out this website (before April 2005) to compete to win a trip to Japan to win a Pokémon amusement park: http:emerald. pokemon- games. com/ battle/ emerald/ (just take out all of the spaces in the address). Third, are any of you interested in reading the one-shot short story I wrote for my mom's birthday? It's called 'Let Them Bake Cake'. The story is about Ash and Misty baking a cake for Delia's birthday… and things go TERRIBLY WRONG! It's a comedy, just like The Tennis Racket... So, if you want to read it, just tell me, and I'll think about posting it. I CAN'T WAIT TO READ YOUR REVIEWS! YEA!
NOTE: Every chapter title is a line from a song, and all of the songs are songs from one of the many Pokémon CD's. If you have identified the song that Chapter 10's title is from, review and let me know, and I'll post your name with the correct title on my next chapter. :)