Note: The next two chapters are inspired by episode 32. Welcome Fuchsia Gym!

34: Aya vs. Misty

"Maybe they shut down," Misty suggested as she wandered through the overgrown landscape with Brock next to her, Ash and Pikachu leading the way. There really was nothing there, or nothing indicative of a person running a gym, anyway. Did anyone even venture out here other than them? The foliage was thick with no defined path, so they often had to cut at the plants themselves to get through. And yet, this was the exact spot they'd been then.

"What?" Ash stopped and turned around, shaking his head at Misty's question. "No way! People were talking about how they just visited the gym."

"They were," Brock agreed.

"Yeah! See? So there's no way it's just shut down," Ash argued, then turning back around to follow Pikachu.

"Well then," Misty continued, looking at the plant life that went past her knees in places. "Maybe we're nowhere near it. We could have just gone the wrong way."

"No! I know where I'm going. You can just go back if you want to complain," Ash said.

"Actually, let's stick together," Brock said. "And Ash is right, this is around where Fuchsia's gym should be."

"It's just hidden," Ash said. "Ninja have powers. I bet Koga made the gym invisible."

"What?" Misty again stopped, shaking her head. "You don't actually think ninja have magic powers, do you?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess it's kinda like magic," Ash admitted. "They can turn invisible, and clone themselves, and transform into different stuff, and make stuff appear. That's just the start, I think. Yeah, be careful not to run into the building, Pikachu."

"Pika." Pikachu slowed down, stretching its small arms forward and feeling the air as it walked.

"That's not it, Ash!" Misty insisted, swatting at a plant that Ash snapped back her way. "That's like, fantasy manga or something. Real ninja use skills to make it seem like they're doing those things, but they're just regular people, not sorcerers," Misty insisted.

Ash shrugged. "Okay, still seems cool to me. And looks like the gym's invisible. Can you find it?"

Misty quieted as they kept walking ahead. Pikachu eventually started to sprint ahead, then pause to make sure the humans could keep up. It just seemed like an endless slog until they came across a group of plants that held a distinct square shape, appearing larger as they approached. "How clever," Misty commented. "Annoying, but clever."

Ash's brow furrowed as he studied the shapes, then grinned as he realized what the outline meant. "Let's go, Pikachu!" he said, running forward. "We're at the gym!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu called as it ran faster itself to keep up with its trainer. Brock and Misty walked behind him at a more leisurely pace. Once reaching the building, it was much easier to see the details, including a defined door, underneath the camouflage.

"Let's go in!" Ash said, reaching for the knob.

"Ash, can't you wait for us?" Misty shouted after him.

"Hurry up. I wanna see," Ash said. He waited only a moment before entering the building himself with Pikachu, leaving the door open for the other two.

"He's so impatient," Misty said with a scowl.

"Finding out more about this place, and finding it has taken a while," Brock pointed out. He and Misty slowed their steps as they reached the entrance before they heard two loud cries from the inside - one human, one pokemon in unison. "Ash?" Brock called.

"Are you okay?" Misty also raised her voice. After hearing no answer, she and Brock ran inside, finding a small room, Ash and Pikachu in a net in the ceiling. "How did you get up there?" Misty asked.

"Ugh, I dunno," Ash groaned.

"They look okay at least," Misty said, shaking her head.

"Let me take a look," Brock said. As he circled around underneath Ash looking for a way to get him down, a net shot out from the wall, entrapping him as well. As he reached for a pokeball, his hand was struck, causing him to drop it to the ground.

"Wait right there!" a person dressed in bright pink ninja armor spoke. "If you stayed away, I'd let you be. But now that you're here, I have business with you."

"Do you wanna battle?" Ash said, repositioning himself to observe his loudly-dressed captor below. "Wait, Koga's a girl?"

"A very pretty lady," Brock said, standing motionless and staring at the loudly-dressed woman, apparently giving up on his own escape.

"My name is Aya. Aren't you familiar with the ways of a pokemon gym by now? Brother takes appointments. You're free to make one, that is, if your ally can free you from your plight and you survive," the ninja explained.

"Aren't you being a little overdramatic?" Misty said with a sigh. "The ninja thing is fun, fine. But all this," Misty waved her hand to the boys and pokemon in nets. "It's too much."

"My journey with ninjutsu isn't just fun, it's a serious undertaking," Aya explained.

"Seriously?" Misty grinned in amusement as she studied Aya's pose and perfectly deadpan expression. "How serious can you be? What kind of ninja dresses in neon colors?"

"It's important to dress for the occasion," Aya said. "In this case, what makes you think I didn't want you to see me?" Aya pointed forward accusingly. "You're my adversary, and I'm challenging you!"

"I'm your-" Misty paused, her face scrunching up. "Wait, there's a mistake. I'm no traveling trainer... Well, technically I am, but I'm not challenging gyms." Misty waved her open hands, trying to clear up any misunderstanding.

"Are you a coward, then?" Aya said, blinking purposefully.

"Am I what?" Misty scowled as she realized despite any sort of misunderstanding, this person was purposefully trying to provoke her.

"A coward, expecting someone to fight for you while being unwilling to do so yourself. Because I'm challenging you, not anyone else. Take me on, or else!" Aya shouted.

"Or else? Or else what?" Misty said.

"Can't you use your imagination?" Aya put her fingers to her lips. "Perhaps something bad will happen to them... Do you think they might lose their lives?"

"Huh?" Ash again tried to reposition himself before looking up to check if there was any way to release the net.

"Pika?" Pikachu chomped down on one of the ropes.

Brock clenched his jaw. "Miss Aya, maybe we can talk about this more. One on one, perhaps."

Aya giggled. "I do feel for you. Are you starting to sweat? I certainly would myself, presented with the idea of having my life dependent on this coward of a girl," she mused.

"You need to stop messing around!" Misty took a step forward, definitely angry now, and started to shout. "Just let them go! You have no reason to pick on us like this!" Misty clenched her fists, trembling.

"Oh, maybe I don't," Aya said nonchalantly before turning and meeting Misty's eyes. "Well, not with these two, anyway. With you, there's certainly plenty reason." Aya threw something down on the floor, and smoke appeared in the air. Misty closed her eyes, coughing as she went back to open the front entrance all the way. As the smoke cleared, she found Aya and her captees were gone.

A mechanical laughter went through the air, emanating from a speaker. "Oh? You're still here?" The voice was certainly Aya's. "I'm surprised. Well, come and face me, then. Or don't. It doesn't make a difference to me."

Misty swallowed nervously as she spun around the front entrance. There were doors everywhere, and not a trace of a trail. What was wrong with this person anyway. "Brock? Ash? Pikachu?" Misty called as she wandered past one after another.

"It's no use. They won't come to your rescue," the voice from the speaker continued.

"I'm trying to help them!" Misty snapped. She ran to one door, finding the door locked. After trying to force the sliding door open, she moved onto the next, finding the same situation.

Aya's laughter again rang through the speakers. "Are you done, then?" she said.

"Hardly," Misty said, taking out two pokeballs. "Go, Staryu, Starmie!" They were the ones likely to help her most. Misty pointed to the doorknob. "Water gun, now!" she ordered. Starmie called out as it performed the technique, easily cutting through the paper of the shoji screen. Peeking through the damage, Misty took a step back. "What is this?" she demanded, seeing yet another hall, this time with doors on the ceiling. "You're trying to show off your fun house?"

Still more mechanical mocking laughter crackled over the speaker. "So you force your way in? How uncouth, and how very much like you!"

"You think you know me that well?" Misty asked, irritated to be judged so much by some eccentric kunoichi, as she paced around the other doors.

"I know how you've publicly presented yourself. I don't care to get to know you other than that," the speaker replied. Misty herself didn't say anything in return, and more broadcasted chatter resumed. "Given your current progress, I can imagine your poor companions won't last long in their current situation. Will you come and avenge them later, or just cry for others to do so?"

Misty rose to the bait. "Would you quit messing around!" she demanded, scowling. "That's not nice at all. Is this how you treat all your challengers?"

"Oh, my mistake. Did you not state that you weren't a challenger?" Aya's voice replied.

"I'm not!" Misty demanded. "So is this how you treat everyone who visits this officially certified gym?"

"Well, well." There was a note of amusement in Aya's voice. "I wonder why you mention our standing as an officially certified gym? What could that have to do with anything, considering you're not even interested in challenging the gym?"

"Why couldn't it?" Misty asked as she slowly went by each door, looking for an opening or other entrance to get in. "There's standards for how to treat people who visit your gym. Even if kidnapping people isn't specifically mentioned, I'm pretty sure that goes against them!"

Aya's obnoxious laughter rang through the speakers again, getting especially tiring. "Oh, my dear, I would explain to you that gym leaders tend to make their own rules, and it takes quite a stir to punish any of them for bending the little guidelines to their own whims."

"That's right, huh," Misty muttered, pausing in front of one door. The most egregious example was Erika saying she didn't want to give badges to trainers who failed standards outside of losing to her in a battle. However, though Surge, Sabrina, and even Brock's family ran a tight gym, in their own ways, none of them quite met standards, either. Perhaps even Misty's family's gym had been lacking since she left.

"Oh yes, yes, no point in judging us as deviant when said deviance is a standard in itself, hm?"

As Aya finished, Misty heard a sound in the door next to her. "I've got you!" she declared, forcing the screen door open and walking in... Just to tumble and fall at the unexpected decline of the trick floor. Misty shouted as she rolled down the floor, Aya's laughter serving as the audio backdrop. As Misty lay on the ground, Starmie and Staryu floated around her. "I'm fine," she muttered to them, pushing herself up.

Back in the hall, there was still no sign of anyone else being nearby. "You know," Misty began in a louder voice, glaring toward the speaker. "Even if you're not concerned about what any authority thinks about your gym, holding people hostage for real is a real crime," she declared.

"Oh, so you'll go running to the local koban to save your friends?" Aya's voice mused, not seeming at all concerned. "What a good idea for a weakling like yourself. Good thing law enforcement is so reliable, aren't they? Isn't that what you're always saying?"

No, it wasn't. Sure, local officers stationed at a koban could help with various things, and Misty could never call them out personally. However, law enforcement as a whole was unreliable when it came to big picture things, like letting Team Rocket run amok. Misty pulled at the next screen, forcefully trying to open it as she thought of her various frustrations. "You can't think what you're doing is at all acceptable!" she shouted.

"It's not, that's what makes it so fun!"

There was an echo of sorts with the latest broadcast. The next door over seemed to be where it had emanated from. Misty went over, trying and succeeding the first time at sliding the door open. The inside was now illuminated, revealing a young woman in a black cloak sitting in front of a microphone. She quickly put it down, clicking a switch before she stood up. "Well, it seems you've found me after all," she said. "Perhaps I underestimated you."

"You-" Misty scratched her head. Was Aya really a ninja, or did she just think so little of Misty? Misty tried to ask her. "You just mocked me loudly on a speaker from behind a thin shoji screen and expected me not to figure out where your real voice was coming from?!"

"That's right," Aya confirmed. "That was my expectation. Who would have guessed such a crass child would find me?" Throwing off her cloak, Aya posed, pokeball in hand. "Well then, shall we battle?"

"Where's Brock and Ash?" Misty asked. A quick glance around the bare, dimly-lit room revealed no sign of them.

"Your friends? Well, that is a question, isn't it?" Aya tapped her chin. "I wonder how long they can last."

"It's really not funny, you know?" Misty said. She outright squeaked as she faced Aya.

"Funny?" Aya repeated. "What could I have said that might be funny?" She peered at her pokeball. "Oh, oh. Did you think this pokeball was a trick, like that trick room you fell for?" Aya asked. "No, I assure you it's genuine, with a battle ready pokemon inside. I'm part of a gym family. As are you, correct? So it shouldn't be a surprise that I'm a trainer as well."

"That's not what I meant," Misty said. Aya really was funning her. "I know you're not really going to do anything bad to Brock and Ash, so just stop talking like that, okay?"

"Anything bad? I wonder what you might mean by that." Aya smirked, raising her pokeball to her shoulder. "Oh dear, are you refusing my challenge? I really do feel sorry for your friends now. Not that I expected you to be able to intervene on their behalf, but one might think with how easily you speak of righteousness you might still try. I wonder what must it be like, to die knowing that one's ally has abandoned you? Truly devastating, I'm sure."

"Okay, now it's really time to stop." Misty frowned. "They aren't dying, and you aren't hurting them."

"You seem to know quite a bit about the current status of your friends, despite asking me such a simple question like where they are." Aya shrugged.

Misty sighed, glancing back and forth in the hall. There didn't seem to be any sign of her friends at all, but of course, she hadn't looked in all the doors. Now that she thought about it further, looking at the location door she'd tried to open before the current, many of them were likely false doors. What kind of gym setup was this? "Maybe you think your act is fun, but some kids might get really scared," Misty said. "I know better. Not even Team Rocket just kills people."

"Team Rocket? Funny you should mention them." Aya stepped forward, giggling to herself, or perhaps at Misty personally. "So you say Team Rocket wants to keep their hands clean, of blood at least? Oh, well, I might assume that to be true. By the way, did you know ninja are sometimes employed to complete tasks that one considers themselves to be above?"

Misty felt a chill as panic set in. She calmed herself enough to speak. "So you're with Team Rocket?" she asked, biting her lip as she glanced to make sure her pokemon were still there. Starmie and Staryu indeed floated nearby on alert.

"I wonder what makes you think that?" Aya said.

"Do you really wonder?" Misty said. "Let's just battle, if that's what it's going to take. Starmie, go!"

"Venonat, go! Stun spore!" Aya shouted as she threw out the pokeball.

"Water gun!" Misty followed with her own order. Since Aya's order was quicker, her venonat's attack hit first, covering Misty's floating pokemon with the powder. As Starmie found itself paralyzed, it was unable to complete the attack, struggling to keep itself in the air. "Starmie, quick! Try again," Misty encouraged.

"Venonat, poison sting," Aya ordered. Venonat hopped forward then jumped, piercing Starmie with the stinger that appeared before hopping to the side and dodging the torrent of water from Starmie's attack. Aya laughed as Starmie flinched and called out in frustration. "Well done, Venonat. You're truly talented, even considering the level of our current opponent."

"Starmie, return!" Misty held up her pokeball as her ailing pokemon was drawn back in. "Staryu, we can handle this! Bubble beam! No one that's going to murder people for Team Rocket's sake will lose to us."

"Venonat, super sonic!" Aya said before frowning. "Murder? How troubling. Who are you referring to?" she asked as Staryu's stream of bubbles went toward her pokemon. Venonat responded with the supersonic attack, scrunching up as it screeched. The sound waves popped some bubbles before Staryu started waving around in its confusion. "Oh, wait." Her eyes widened. "Do you mean me? What a troubling accusation. It's quite serious, you know. I do hope you have proof to back up your claims."

Even seeing poor Staryu struggle in its fighting stance circling around without much focus, Misty was unable to respond. Wasn't that similar to what Giovanni had said when she'd first met him? That she ought to have some proof of what she said? Recalling the whole of the situation brought upset, but thinking about things further only angered her. Why should she need proof? What did that even mean? Everyone already knew what Team Rocket did, and this lady had more or less just admitted to her own crimes in her association. What other proof was needed? "Staryu-" Misty began.

"Venonat, psybeam!"

"-bubble beam!" Misty completed.

As Staryu was hit by Venonat's colorful psybeam, it struggled to complete its own technique, only a modest amount of bubbles floating haphazardly in every direction, certainly not enough to do battle damage. "Venonat, tackle!" Aya ordered.

"Veno, nat," Venonat called as it flung itself toward its opponent. Staryu fell on the ground. It trembled in surprise before raising itself back up, turning from one direction to the other as its light started to blink.

"Staryu..." Misty frowned. Though her faceless star-shaped pokemon seemed hard to read to other people, after having been around them for so long, she knew that Staryu was having more than just the typical amount of trouble. "That's enough! Return!" The pokeball's light glowed as poor Staryu was drawn back in.

"Is that really all?" Aya said with a sigh, tossing her long ponytail over her shoulder. "Well, it's disappointing to have such an easy win, but I suppose I couldn't have expected more from the girl who sat and demanded that all of the gym leaders kowtow to her idea of justice, change everything in an instant to fit her vision. You can't expect to win much of anything with that level of arrogance, oh no."

"Is that what he told you happened?" Misty muttered as Aya tittered. She then raised her voice, addressing Aya as she got out her last pokeball. "If all gym leaders stood together, we could have stopped all this already! Not that I'd expect anything from someone like you. No, this isn't over. Go, Goldeen!" Goldeen appeared in a flash of light. Misty didn't waste time before providing it direction. "Agility!"

"Venonat, super sonic," Aya ordered.

Goldeen swished around in the air, wincing briefly though not otherwise seeming affected by Venonat's technique. Aya had gotten lucky with the previous two pokemon, but now, said luck was failing. "Alright! Now, Goldeen! Fury attack!" Misty ordered.

"Venonat, poison sting!" Aya attempted the technique a second time. Goldeen charged toward it, hitting it once, and then over and over again at a rapid speed.

"Venonat!" Venonat eventually called in a high-pitched shriek before falling on its side before it could attempt its own attack.

"Venonat! I suppose that's all." Aya returned her pokemon, sighing. "Well dear, I come from a poorer gym, so I suppose I've lost this one on three battle. There are no more pokemon from me."

"So I win!" Misty declared, running over to her pokemon and patting it on the head. "Good job, Goldeen. I know it's harder for you to battle here than in water. But you did it!" Misty laughed, hugging her pokemon. "Now," she began, smirking as she looked toward Aya. "Give me back my friends."

Aya turned away. "You've really learned nothing," she said.

"What's there to learn? You lost!" Misty said. Though three on one wasn't exactly fair, neither was holding her friends captive. And now that she'd overpowered the enemy, it was time for the ninja girl to stop with her nonsense.

Aya stepped forward calmly, not at all ashamed of her loss. She stood less than an arm's length away, folding her arms as she glared down at the younger girl. "What makes you assume you've won at all?" the ninja asked.

"Did you have backup after all?" Misty scowled. Though she'd been on heightened alert to if anyone else entered the area, that didn't mean there wasn't someone else on the way. Or maybe she hadn't noticed one that had used a stealth ninja technique?

"Not really," Aya admitted calmly, tossing her ponytail yet again.

"Then you're done! It's time to give up and let my friends go."

"And how do you plan to make me?" Aya challenged. Misty's mouth opened, though she said nothing in surprise. The younger trainer glanced at Goldeen before looking back at her defeated opponent. Aya shook her head. "Goldeen is an impressive pokemon. Do you plan to threaten me with it?"

"Of course not!" Misty insisted, horrified at the thought. "I'm not like Team Rocket. I'd never do that."

"Did Team Rocket ever threaten you with their pokemon?" Aya asked, blinking purposefully as she looked down at the younger girl. "Or was it by themselves?" She paused, meeting Goldeen's eyes with a smile. "When the pokemon battle is over, pokemon often don't care to get involved in human squabbles. Isn't that right, Goldeen?"

The pokemon looked away from both Misty and Aya, calling out softly as if to confirm the ninja's statement. Misty returned it, as the battle was over. She recalled being accosted by the men from Team Rocket after defeating Giovanni during her first gym leader meeting. She'd easily beaten the rocket boss, but then had her tired and outnumbered pokemon defeated in return, seemingly just as easily. But what if her pokemon had been in better shape and she'd actually won? Even then, she'd have her relatively peaceful pokemon that she couldn't imagine harming a human, even a group of violent trainers.

"Is it starting to sink in?" Aya said. "That battle was just fluff. No matter what, you can't change the fate of your friends. Go and run and cry to someone about it." Aya turned her back.

With that, Misty took her chance, running toward the older girl in an attempt to push her down. Instead, she found herself flipped over, and shouted in pain. As she opened her eyes, she found Aya standing above her, fist raised, holding her down.

"So you really don't understand," Aya said. "Let me explain it. You're just a loudmouthed girl who can't win."

How could she accept that? If Ash and Brock were really in danger, she wanted to save them. At that moment in time, though the older girl didn't look about to strike, the whole situation showed just how much danger Misty herself was in. She realized she was trembling in fear only as Aya let her go.

"Perhaps," the ninja began, pacing toward the corner of the room. "You shouldn't attempt to impart your values onto others without having the power to back it up. Even the words you speak can have consequences, and often not for the best." Aya hit a panel on the wall, and a rope dropped down from the ceiling. "Follow me if you dare."

After Aya disappeared into the ceiling, Misty eventually rose to her feet. She approached the rope, looking up. She was sure she could hear voices from the top. Were they really threatening Brock, Ash, and even Pikachu with their deaths? What was there to even gain from that for any of them? Climbing up this rope might answer those questions, give her a better idea of the situation. Or it might put her in danger. After all, when it came to her and her two human friends, she was Giovanni's most vocal opponent. Brock placated the rocket boss while Ash demonstrated little understanding of the situation. So, if Aya and Koga were working for Giovanni, wasn't Misty the one he wanted to silence most? That would best be taken care of by harming Misty directly instead of threatening her friends.

Even so, Misty wasn't the captive. Her friends were, and Aya had invited her to follow. Even just to get a better idea of what might be done next, Misty started to climb the rope.

Aya had made it look so easy, ascending to the top floor quickly. Misty struggled, at first wondering if it was even possible to lift herself up on it. She did, once, but then felt pain from gripping it too tightly, and dropped back down. Giving it a second try, and then a third, she eventually made it up, pulling herself to the floor above.

The light there was bright, the afternoon sun coming in through an open window. Staring around the room, Misty did notice Ash and Brock, sitting with Aya and a male ninja Misty assumed to be Koga at the table. In front of them was a traditional dinner, with a bowl of rice and soup, along with other dishes such as pickles and what looked like freshly made fish. Pikachu was also there, a bowl in front of it. What was going on here?

"There's Misty," Brock said with a smile.

"Pikachupi!" Pikachu greeted with similar glee.

"Oh, yeah, hi," Ash said before turning his attention back toward the food.

"What are you even doing up here?!" Misty demanded between catching her breath. The casual atmosphere after all the threats was way too much.

"Just having dinner," Ash informed. "You're done battling Aya? What took you so long? And why didn't you just take the stairs?" Ash raised an eyebrow as he stared down at the floor she'd climbed up from.

"Please, do join us. I have food prepared for you as well," the man at the table invited.

Still dumbfounded, Misty walked over to the table, where a separate meal was indeed prepared. She sat down seiza style. Though Ash and Brock were more casual, that was how Aya was sitting, calmly and quietly going through her own servings. Though it was delicious-looking, Misty couldn't bring herself to start her own. "You were just teasing me! When you said Koga was gonna kill my friends if I didn't save them, what kind of sick joke was that?!"

"Oh?" Aya looked at Misty from the corner of her eye. "I don't recall saying that at all," she said before taking another nibble of the food.

"You're gonna just sit there and lie?!" Misty demanded.

"Hm." Aya carefully placed down her chopsticks, staring to the ceiling. "I do recall dwelling on some dark possibilities... I may have a habit of imagining the worst. I also wondered how long they'd last before my brother invited them to dinner. He sometimes likes to talk, and he'd certainly want to have a conversation with a fellow gym leader. They didn't stand a chance of escaping this."

"Oh, right," the man at the table began as Aya carefully continued her meal. "I'm Koga of Fuchsia, if you hadn't guessed. You're Misty of Cerulean, correct?"

"Right," Misty said with a slight bow.

"Ha. Giovanni's second biggest fan, from what I hear," Koga said with a laugh.

"Fan? I'm not his fan! I hate him!" Misty informed.

"Right, right," Koga said. "Just like Aya, his number one 'fan'."

Misty looked toward the older girl who chewed her food with her eyes closed. "Weren't you just acting like you admired him? Worked for him?"

"Hm." Aya spoke after she'd finished the bite of food. "I do keep on eye on him, on Team Rocket in general on and off. Gathering intelligence is important for those who wish to act against another's intentions."

"So you are working against him?" Misty asked.

"Did I say that?" Aya said, still glancing away from Misty. "Anyway, there was a time I was observing covertly at one of those sham gym leader meetings, and I happened to see a little girl jump up and babble on about how terrible he was in his own home gym, and how everyone should rush to change right that instant, and then seemed to think they were all awful people when they didn't."

"Oh." Misty looked down.

"Of course, I was worried about her, when the rocket agents went to intimidate her afterward. Though I might have intervened, I didn't need to, since they only riled her up a bit. I couldn't help but think she didn't deserve it."

The idea that she was just a dumb kid to any observing gym leaders had already been burned into Misty's mind, but hearing Aya's take directly was fairly embarrassing. "Sorry to worry you," she said. Aya just shrugged. "But you do want to go against Team Rocket?" Misty asked.

"All good things come with time," Aya said. "I'll happily stand with anyone who competently goes against them."

"As will I," Koga agreed. "The current situation is quite the ordeal, isn't it? But you and Aya aren't the only ones who think so. I'm sure things will get better eventually, with the right organization and help."

"Right," Misty said. She got it already. She couldn't just jump in and play hero and get everything fixed because she said so. Though being also tired of being told to wait, maybe doing so was the best for the moment.

"Aya, you really shouldn't have teased her so much," Koga chided.

"Oh, no," Misty picked her head up, shaking it in protest. "It's really-"

"Right," Aya drawled, interrupting her. "My brother is always worried about how young travelers like you lot are treated," she added with a smile to Misty. "That's part of why he always has his challengers over for dinner. He has quite the sense of responsibility, doesn't he? I suppose it comes from having to raise me after our parents left us to try and become top trainers."

"Really?" Brock turned to Koga.

"Really," Aya confirmed. "Except, they did eventually have to give up on that dream."

With that, Brock suddenly had a lot to talk to Koga about, sharing stories about taking care of their siblings, their various routines, even getting into recipes. Misty eventually got started on the meal in front of her, which apparently had been hand-prepared by the current leader of Fuchsia Gym. Though a different sort of dish than Brock's, the food was actually quite good, as was the company, once they'd gotten past Aya's repeated 'lesson' and could just chat.

As they all finished, Misty eventually turned to Ash. "So, are you going to battle him?" she asked.

"Well, yeah," Ash said. He pointed to the book on the floor. Picking it up, Misty saw that current date and the next were blocked off, but on the next available day, Ash had signed his name for an earlier slot. Misty nodded to him before placing the book back.

What kind of gym leader, trainer in general was Koga? Now that Misty had calmed down, she could consider it further. He didn't really have a reputation as a top gym leader like some of the previous Ash had seemingly randomly chosen to face, but the 'poisonous ninja master' had kept his gym in good standing quite a while on his own, indicating some level of competence. The battle should be interesting to see.

Next chapter: Ash vs. Koga