(edited.2020.04.01)
Locked Away, Chapter 16
A shade of silence wrapped around the trio. Ash watched what would be his half brother huff and puff with a rather concerned expression. Misty crossed her arms subjectively, her face growing both stern and skeptical by the second.
"...You knew it was me?" Ash questioned, blinking his eyes at the young boy. Immediately, Cole nodded his head, eager to have finally met Ash.
"I did! I couldn't let you leave without talking to you!" Cole shouted excitedly, pumping one of his fists in the air—almost identical to how Ash used to be.
"Did your mom...?" Ash questioned, feeling a sting in his chest having to address her as 'your' mom, instead of 'our mom'. Cole shook his head, approaching Ash and juggling pikachu in his arms. On his back, he wore a maroon bag that wiggled. At the realization that it hadn't been her, Ash's shoulders drooped significantly.
"Professor—I mean your dad, then?" Ash asked, pointing at Cole, who winced in response. As Cole approached, Ash knelt to face the boy on his level.
Cole shook his head gently. "My dad wasn't around very much..." Cole cast his gaze to the ground, but then quickly restored his smile and stared directly at Ash, eager once again.
"Pikachu told me about you!" He confessed with a wide grin forming over his cheeks. The over-weight pokemon chirped in his arms. Ash blinked skeptically, a half snort coming from Misty as she cocked one brow down to watch the exchange.
"Pika chuuu." It muttered pathetically, trying to remove itself from Cole's arms. Ash's face flushed very slightly.
"Ahh, man. Pikachu didn't even know me for very long." Ash assured Cole, rubbing the back of his head—Cole's face flat-lined.
"What do you mean? He's known you for years." Cole assured Ash whose face grew six shades paler as his eyebrows knit together. He backed away and wanted to spare a glance at Misty, but found his eyes were trained on the yellow rodent. It was Misty whose shock became vocalized first.
"He what?" She questioned, kicking her feet out to move towards Cole herself.
Letting pikachu down, he naturally found his way to Ash's hands where he hugged the trainer's arms affectionately. Ash stiffened at the familiar brush of pikachu's fur and he grimaced inwardly. Misty knelt beside the two of them, distraught at the news and offering a firm hand on Ash's shoulder to show her support. For once, he didn't reel away.
"I don't understand a lot of it, but he always told me about the adventures you two went on, well... He wrote them down, I guess." Cole told him while standing up and taking a few steps back to observe the nature shared between the pokemon and trainer.
"...the adventures...?" Ash echoed in disbelief.
Eyes wide, Ash's head turned slowly to pikachu as Misty muttered something incoherent under her breath. The pokemon glanced at Ash who had taken to staring at pikachu dumbfounded. Togepi slipped out of his arms to give the two their moment. With shaking fingers, Ash outstretched his hand to pikachu and lifted him up high as a curtain was raised from both of their eyes. Standing upright, he brought the mouse to his face and stared into his beady black eyes. Pikachu squealed at him in return. In a moments notice when Ash placed their foreheads together, a short, very gentle zap formed between the two of them, just enough to create a spark that pulled years of torment off of Ash's lips with one toothy grin. He reeled back, almost spinning.
"You remember, don't you?" He spoke aloud, earning both a grin from Cole and a sound of elation from the rodent.
"Cha!" it cheered, pumping its fist while Misty stood up quickly, eyes wide and back straightened. She visibly backed away from the group, tucking her arms protectively around herself.
"How?" Ash questions while squeezing the pokemon cheerfully. Ash looked at Cole, concern washing over his face. "Was pikachu injured?"
"No...he just slept... like... a lot... when he would wake up he would try to tell me about these elaborate dreams—or he would try to... I can pick up on some stuff, but he has to write a lot of it." Cole admitted sheepishly, scratching the back of his head as Ash does. "He found a box of your things buried in the basement, so..."
"Wait, wait, wait." Misty waved her hands in front of herself. "You can understand him?" she pointed to pikachu who upon seeing the redhead gasped and bound, or at least tried to jump from Ash's arms and into Misty's, who caught the pokemon awkwardly with a gaping mouth. She didn't hug him. She held him away from herself in horror.
"Chaa~" piakchu squealed, fighting her reproach, by rubbing is head against her chest familiarly. She blinked her wide eyes and looked between Ash and Cole, who both seemed to think its reaction was totally normal.
"Looks like pikachu remembers you," Ash said dully, and Misty shook her head in retort handing the yellow mouse back over to Ash and taking a full step back. At the same time, togepi took a full step forward, touching Ash's foot unnoticed.
"That doesn't make any sense though; that therapist, Dr. Abby said that it was most definitely all a dream and coincidence," Misty argued, placing her hand forward to shut out the odd accusations and regain her composure.
"She said it was only a hypothesis, Misty." Ash murmured cheerily, hitching her name on there for emphasis. She began to pace, making Cole a bit nervous.
"You're just willingly going to accept this as totally normal?" Misty squeaked, feeling her face grow hotter by the second, she turned away and fan herself. She fell asleep last night in the normal world and woke up in whatever odd place these kinds of things happened.
"It's no different from knowing about you, is it?" Ash asked pikachu echoed his statement as Misty threw up her arms.
"It's a little different, Ash!" She gestured to the two of them with her hands and blinked voraciously. "I'm not a pokemon, and second of all, how in the world?" She questioned, getting an unimpressed look from Ash.
"...Do you have to understand everything?" He asked, looking down sadly at pikachu. "Does it matter how he knows? Just that he knows..."
"Knows what?" Cole asked innocently, bringing Ash back to his proper grin as he looked down at the boy. Most likely, Cole had no idea what happened to Ash over the last ten years; to the boy, Ash was probably always on an adventure. Flabbergasted, Misty had to take a moment to press her fingers against her temples. This was technically good news though, wasn't it? When her phone started to go off, her face clearly contorted as she removed the device from her back pocket to answer the unknown number.
"Hey, Cole..." Ash grimaced. "I appreciate you coming out here...but how did you get away from mo—your mom?" He asked, catching himself. The boy grinned, and in a very Ash-like fashion, he wiped his nose, earning a grin from the older brother.
"Gary showed up a few minutes after you left. While he and my mom were talking, I snuck out through the window." He admitted with a charming smile that made Ash feel right at home with that Gary-Esque grin.
"You left without permission?" Ash echoed worriedly. "Damn it, Cole." He squeezed his eyes shut, and as he feared Misty chimed in behind him.
"Calm down Gary, he's fine!" Misty yelled into the phone, having answered it to a frantic Gary yammering her ear off.
"There are cops here looking for him! He's not with you, is he? Ash knows how bad this looks, right?" Gary mused from the other line, catching Misty with a sigh, having forgotten her current problems for the new set.
Misty groaned, rubbing her forehead. "Ash doesn't know anything. Cole followed us here."
"Is that Gary?" Ash asked worriedly and Misty nodded her response but held up a finger to silence further questions while she dealt with the agitated soon-to-be-professor. Cole shifted his feet awkwardly and looked down with his hands clasped together tightly. Not quite ready to let go of pikachu, Ash knelt beside Cole once again and released the mouse.
"Cole you need to go home," Ash warned him, but he seemed against the idea, casting his eyes to the ground.
Breath hitching in his throat, Cole sniffled.
"But there's so much I want to ask you! Have you really seen all of the legendary pokemon? What about Unova?" Cole's questions rattled off faster than Ash could keep up and he had to put up his finger to silence the boy while Misty calmed Gary over the phone by telling the auburn-haired man where they were located.
"It's fine, Cole. Those are all stories for another day. Right now, you have to get back home." Ashed tried, but once again, the notion fell flat and Cole looked down at his feet. Unlike Gary, this part was respectfully his mother's, the look of disappointment and sheer sadness.
"...Mom hasn't been the same since dad died." Cole blurted halfheartedly, and Ash, being who he was; didn't know how to properly answer that. Instead, he touched Cole's shoulder in confidence and looked him dead in the eye.
"Then you need to be there for her." He cracked a weak smile. "For us."
Bottom lip quivering, the younger brother tucked his hands against his eyes to wipe away tears before they appeared. "Do you think you can come to visit again?" He asked quickly, causing Ash to laugh gently.
"Not if you don't go home. They think I took you." Ash laughed from his belly, getting a slight grin from Cole.
"Pikachu wanted to come...or..." he said, glancing at the pokemon which squeaked its apology. "I wouldn't have been brave enough to come on my own without pikachu." Cole rephrased, looking up once again at Ash with that same heroic gaze. Ash's face flushed gently as he scratched the side of his cheek.
"Then it's a good thing you have him, isn't it?" Ash suggested, looking down at pikachu modestly, who shook his head in response.
"Well... no. Pikachu wants to stay. He's been waiting for you." Cole suggested, finally turning around to show Ash the squirming bag he carried. Carefully, Ash took the bait and opened the latch of the bag, watching a spill of yellow electric pokemon pour out in squeaks just as Misty hung up the phone. She jumped, seeing the band of pichus.
"I have these guys to keep me company!" Cole offered, sharing the same laugh as Ash.
"There's so many!" Ash cooed, looking at the multitude. "Are these all yours?" Ash gasped, looking at his old-friend who scratched his ears pathetically as if saying yes.
"That's great, but Gary is on is way to come grab you," Misty said interjecting her comments between the brothers as she scooped the forgotten togepi off of the ground. It sighed in vertebrate, being carried by the woman once again.
"You're kind of mean," Cole muttered with a pout at her abrasive nature. Automatically, both Ash and pikachu shared in a fitful laugh, grinning up at Misty. Her face turned scarlet and her hands clenched at Cole's words... why that little.... but his quick forming grin told her it was only a joke. She let it go with a sigh.
"Really, pikachu, you should stay with your family," Ash assured the pokemon quickly, stroking its ears and red cheeks. He shook his head.
"Pika, pika chu." he said, confirming his want to travel. Then, he tried to jump from the ground and onto Ash's shoulder, only to realize it had a great struggle, and only managed with the help of Cole pushing it upward as he spun back around.
"He should go. So when you come back, you can tell more stories!" the child complained, and Ash could hardly contain himself. How could he say no to that face? Or to his pikachu for that matter. Not this world's pikachu, but his pikchu. His heart swelled with immense joy, he hugged pikachu tightly once more.
"If you insist!" Ash said pridefully, earning a glare from Misty who thought he was being sentimental for once—but of course, that was lost on him.
"Do you need me to walk you back?" She offered, looking directly at Cole.
"I think the mean lady should stay here." He cooed and she could feel a vein pop on her forehead.
"I am not mean." She hissed, but Ash stared at her with innocent eyes.
"You are a little bit." Ash retaliated, getting a matching grin from his younger brother. Whether Ash realized it or not, they had something in common; that stupid-grin of theirs! She rolled her eyes.
"Well, we can't leave him here on his own," Misty suggested and Ash felt a smile play on his lips as he looked back down at Cole.
"Then we have that time to talk about whatever you want!" Ash assured the boy who cheered in response. Misty sighed, watching the road below with great commitment. At least Ash's anger was currently thwarted. For that, she was grateful. Her attitude, however, sprung from everything else about this moment.
It did make her wonder, if pikachu remembered, why couldn't she? She looked at Ash who had taken to sitting with his legs crossed in the dirt, holding three pichus in his lap as a pikachu with a pink bow walked around him skeptically. In her own arms, she felt togepi squirm to be released, and so she put the egg pokemon down which rushed to Ash to be greeted with that same, unnerving grin. Cole asked about the egg, and while Ash drowned out the noise in her mind with stories, she looked back down at the end of the road, where she saw the Viridian City hospital in the distance; but even more than that, she saw what remained of the old gym.
She felt like they were being watched somehow, by someone far away.
Was that just her own paranoia? Her amazement that someone other than Ash remembered everything? What did that mean in terms of Ash's recovery? Would he continue down the road he started: Regain his license, return to training, or would he chase his dreams again? If that's what they really were. Misty rubbed her chin thoughtfully, her brows furrowing. Perhaps, the only reason pokemon remembered was because pokemon typically shared a special connection with their trainers? Sometimes, they shared an unspoken bond to the greatest depths of reality and emotion... Misty turned slowly back at the boys and their yellow rodents, catching togepi staring at her with beady, damp eyes.
What if other people remembered Ash? Those other trainers that he talked about at the beginning of his coma? Clearly, this pikachu, though she would have been skeptical at first, seemed completely natural around Ash and his half-brother. To suggest a pokemon remembered the full extent of his dreams though...that was crazy... but maybe on some level, they were always connected.
"Cole, why didn't pikachu tell you where Ash was?" Misty asked suddenly breaking their story, he looked up at her with curious eyes.
"What do you mean?" he asked as Misty approached the two of them and squat beside the group of pokemon and boys.
"I mean you said that pikachu remembered everything and told you stories about Ash; why didn't you tell anyone about this? About Ash?"
"...Well, who would believe a six-year-old?" Cole said defensively, looking away from Misty. She struck a nerve with the boy. "My mom didn't believe me, neither did dad." He said tiredly, a frown deeper than any boy his age should know framed his face.
"...but if pikachu and I were connected, why didn't you tell me in my dreams what was going on?" He looked at the pokemon and it lowered its ears sadly.
"Pikaaaa." It groaned, suggesting that it wasn't his dream. Misty snapped her fingers and looked at Ash.
"He had no control over what happened; therefore, pikachu could only have told you if you wanted to hear it." She suggested thoughtfully, but Ash tore his gaze away from her, a frown replacing his dominant smile—guess they were still not okay then. She looked away as well.
"Does it matter? Ash is better now." Cole said, his young innocence deflating Ash's worry as he once again smiled.
"It doesn't matter! What's in the past, is in the past! We can only move forward." Ash suggested happily, though Misty rose to her feet and stalked off in another direction. That simply wasn't good enough for her.
Standing again, she saw the approaching auburn-haired pokemon researcher and whistled to the boys: "Gary's here,"
"Oh..." Cole grumbled defeatedly while Ash stood up, scooping togepi into his arms while pikachu struggled to find perch on Ash's shoulder in his new chubby state. Cole gathered the pichus slowly, picking up the bow-tie pikachu and facing the direction that he ran to meet Ash.
"Cole!" Gary yelled at him in a scolding manner, making his way up the short incline as his white lab coat flapped in the wind. "What in hell were you thinking running off like that? Your mom is worried sick! She thinks Ash kidnapped you!" Gary groaned, approaching the child with a stern look that only made Cole retaliate by sticking his tongue out.
"I just wanted to see Ash." Cole offered bitterly, side-glancing at Ash who offered a weak smile. His eyes were trained on Gary, trying to work past the instantaneous rage that briefly captured his heart, and then fled.
"Your grand-dad and my mom, huh?" Ash asked awkwardly, getting a bright blush from Gary who helped close Cole's backpack as if he was used to parenting the child.
"You should have seen the wedding." Gary shuddered, patting Cole's innocent auburn hair while Misty blew out air from her lungs.
"Why didn't you mention that Cole already knew about Ash?" Misty asked, once again pinning a question that served only to earn a glare from Ash.
"What?" Gary asked, looking down at Cole who looked away as quickly as Gary made eye contact. Obviously, the former-rival had no idea that Cole was aware of Ash.
Gary blinked. "Did your mother mention Ash before?"
"No..." Cole muttered and Misty sighed, crossing her arms before the conversation could barrel back into the grounds of explaining that confusion. Gary, of course, had no idea about Ash's dreams—they never came up in conversations before, and so they would have to explain all of that—which they didn't have time for.
"It's a long story, Gary. But why don't you get back and make sure the police are tame?" She offered, taking control of the situation as she usually did, but Ash waved her off nonchalantly as he leaned down to awkwardly hug Cole who returned the gesture warmly.
Gary watched with sad eyes at the two before they separated, pikachu took one last chance to hug the child.
"You're taking pikachu?" Gary asked skeptically and Ash grimaced.
"He is still technically mine...and Cole is okay with it," Ash muttered, patting the pokemon in question on the head. Gary raised his eyebrows.
"You don't have a license," Gary noted dully, and Ash glanced toward the edge of the forest.
"It's taken care of for now..." He mumbled, but rather than sharing a glance with Misty, he made every motion possible to steer clear of her vision. "But eventually...soon. I'll need an official one." Ash added looking back at Gary who nodded.
"I will see what I can do..." Gary said formally, glancing between Misty and Ash with a sullen expression. The enmity was as thick as a rain forest, the complete opposite of their nature the last time he saw them. Cole didn't seem to notice as he smiled brightly at Ash.
"In the meantime—try not to kill each other," Gary suggested to the two of them who rolled their eyes at equal intervals.
Turning away from the duo, Gary placed a hand on the young boys head as they walked away from the two—but Cole seemed to have no interest in being 'babied' by the older man, instead he fanned Gary's hand away several times before glancing back over his shoulder at Ash. Cupping his lips, he grinned.
"Don't forget to write!" Cole screamed, and then waved, walking backward. "I'll miss you pikachu! It was great finally meeting you, Ash! You, too, Misty!" He whined, but Gary groaned and flicked the child to watch where he was going before he fell down.
"I will!" Ash called, pikachu yelling with him.
Misty's jaw went slack, realizing that she never told Cole her name or anything about herself. Shoulders tight, she felt her brain spiraling into the pure crazy that was this entire situation.
Somehow, Ash would find a way to stay in contact with the boy. It would be hard at first, seeing as his mother wanted nothing to do with Ash. Maybe she just needed time to warm up? Seeing Cole made him believe there was still some hope left; if only a little. Maybe there was something more he didn't understand? With pikachu on his shoulder now, he felt three times more like himself, even if pikachu actually had weight, feeling more like a ten-pound weight on his neck than a pokemon. Noticing this, pikachu jumped off of his trainer's shoulder and onto the ground. They watched Gary and Cole disappear into the foreground as muteness spread over the duo and their pokemon. Had Misty's feet not been shuffling beside him, he might have even forgotten that she was standing there.
"I'm still mad at you." He offered, almost childishly while Misty pursed her lips, crossing her arms behind her back. She wasn't sure if he was joking. He thought that he was, but he wasn't sure.
"Thanks, I don't need you to keep reminding me. I get it." She said harshly, turning away from him and starting down the road once more. Anxiously, he followed her.
"You lied to me." He offered sardonically.
She sighed, head low. "I said I was sorry."
"Are you really though?" He questioned, pointedly.
Misty scoffed then almost glared at him but stopped herself short of a pathetic look.
"Of course I am." She motioned keeping her eyes forward. With the distractions gone, that simply left the two of them; walking awkwardly beside one another. Pikachu had to work to keep up with Ash and he slowed his pace respectful to the out-of-shape mouse.
Quiet funneled between the two of them, just the sound of their feet scuffing the dirt as Ash watched the evening sun over the horizon. Pikachu caught onto the awkward tension between the two of them and gave his regards in a sympathetic sigh. Ash pursed his lips at his small, rounder, yellow friend and then glared back at Misty, not quite ready to admit defeat.
"So," he cleared his throat, "Why did you lie to me?" He asked and Misty sighed, hoping that he could have just let it go after seeing how it was there; but that was unlike him. His mindset, his age. He wasn't able to move past information unless he knew everything about it. Irrational, like a child, even now. Despite knowing this, Misty sighed. Even if Delia so clearly did not want to see him, it still wasn't her place to lie to him about it—he deserved to see it on his own time. She should have told him, then went with him. Maybe it would have been different. However, Ash didn't seem angry at Gary. They seemed fine.
"Because sometimes knowing is harder than ignorance. I thought you deserved at least a few days of normalcy after what happened in Pallet Town." She uttered but that still wasn't enough.
"How would you know?" he scowled but seemed to have hit a sore spot with the woman. She visibly flinched at the question as she snapped on him.
"Listen, I get it, I lied to you; what do you want me to say? I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner, but I did tell you." She groaned, stopped and then pointed at him mid-step to make her point clear. Ash put his hands up in defense, but she didn't stop there. "Hate me all you want but I know that you know that you weren't ready a month ago for news like this." She hissed, turning away from him. If she was remorseful, it was hard to tell. Ash scowled.
"So then what, you came all the way back to Viridian City to tell me that you told me so?" He growled, togepi feigning worry as the two bickered; once again, pikachu lowered his ears and sighed. They were the same in every reality, the mouse pokemon assumed.
"No. I came here to make sure you were okay." She grumbled, keeping a pace ahead of him, stomping her feet into the ground with each new step. Ash wanted to throw up his arms, but holding the egg prevented that. Ash's ears rang from the thundering of his own heart. He didn't understand why he couldn't let this go? he certainly wasn't blindly furious with her anymore-a little disappointed, yes, but... not enough to keep this going. Yet, he did not relent.
"Well, I'm okay, so you can go now." He groaned angrily and she didn't hesitate to throw up her arms.
"Maybe I will!" She argued back, her blood boiling under her skin. They walked in momentary silence, realizing their predicament as they both trudged through the forest path to Pewter City.
She huffed, blowing a strand of red hair from her face. There was only one road leading to Pewter City from this direction! Realizing this, she rubbed her cheeks.
"Just as soon as the road allows it." She offered meekly, her shoulders falling. Ash frowned in return.
"Fine! Just stay on your side of the road!" He growled, moving to the left side as pikachu chuckled. Misty shivered objectively.
"That's real mature, Ash!" She groaned, glaring at him. He didn't seem to mind his immaturity, however.
"I could be yelling like you!" he retorted, effectively killing any comeback that she had—mentally, Ash marked that off as the first time he ever won in a fight with this Misty...only to have made himself saddened by the thought. He had never actually been in a fight with this Misty before. Having realized this, he looked up at her, ready to apologize, but found that looking at her proud figure only made him bite down on his tongue and look away determinedly.
He couldn't apologize so easily, but what he wasn't aware of was that Misty wasn't going to leave so easily, either. At least not until she found Brock. Even though she didn't remember; who was to say that Brock wouldn't? It was a long shot, but somehow, she would convince Ash to find his way to the gym. With that thought in her mind, she glanced back at him.
"Brock is from Pewter City." She reminded Ash, who didn't seem to clue in.
"What about it?" He grumbled tiredly, kicking his feet. She fought the urge to sigh; was he always this infuriating?
"Don't you want to meet him?" She suggested shyly, and Ash exhaled.
"What's the point?" He asked weakly, showing his open wounds again to her for only a brief second before hardening himself once more. Things were still too...he wasn't ready to forgive her yet.
"Well...if pikachu remembers you—maybe Brock does?" She finally suggested, tripping over that doe gaze the same way that she always did. Ash perked up, having not thought of this. He looked to Misty with eager eyes, kicking up dust that the wind carried away.
"Do you think so?" Ask asked quickly and she sighed. She couldn't say—but it was worth a shot, wasn't it?
"Maybe... It's worth a shot." She offered her thoughts as she listened to the gleeful patter of his feet as he raced up beside her. So much for splitting the road.
"Do you think that he would remember even if you don't?"
"Maybe my being around you so much is the reason I don't remember anything? Pikachu's dreams were supposedly when he recalled most of your journeys." Misty said thoughtfully, looking back at the pokemon who wheezed from the walk. She snickered to herself: like pokemon, like trainer.
Ash turned a shade of red; "Do-did you ever dream of me?" he fumbled, and Misty crossed her arms thoughtlessly, giggling.
"Obviously not, but that doesn't mean Brock didn't." She suggested and Ash's face fell. The thought of Brock dreaming of him didn't create the same butterfree feelings; he shuddered.
"But... you think it's possible?" Ash asked, having forgotten his anger momentarily. Misty sighed, he had such a one-track mind—at least it reminded her how little his grudge-holding capabilities were.
"I think anything is possible at this point," Misty said, though usually the pessimistic skeptic herself, she was starting to wonder if everything they learned up until this point was accurate—and the best way to find out? Fieldwork.
Author's Note:
You guys are amazing, by the way! So many reviews in such a short time after Ch15 went up! Thank you a million times! This chapter is a bit lighter though, so hopefully that cheers you guys up after last chapter. -cries with you all-