Locked Away Chapter 33:
Ash was oddly comfortable, mashed between the cold, hard wall, and the soft, warm body wrapped in his arms. Traces of short, red hair filled his vision as puffs of breath eased down his neck that didn't belong to him. Without panicking, save himself from making the situation more awkward, he peeled his eyes open one at a time. In front of him, Misty had turned around and was facing him with her arms tucked in front of her chest where Ash had strategically pulled her in tightly. Her arms rested flat against his breast, and while his right arm had gone slightly numb—arguably the reason he woke up to begin with—his left hand was perched over her waist, with his palm nestled at the center of her back, keeping her close.
...Ahh, how did he find himself in these situations? He was sure that he fell asleep sitting up, he was even more sure that she fell asleep holding togepi and facing the other direction—so however this happened, he was at a loss of words.
Lifting his head slowly, he glanced around the room, looking for the two pokemon in question and found that neither were around. Swallowing against his dry throat, he craned his neck to see the radio clock on top of her dresser, where the numbers "12:54" flashed back at him angrily. Setting his head back down tiredly, he shifted a little. They had somehow managed to sleep the entire morning away.
When his eyes settled back on her face, the racing in his chest returned, taking in her gentle, sleeping expression, and he realized the gravity of his situation.
A part of him felt like if he moved, he would wake the redhead, and another part of him felt that if he didn't move, he was at risk of being called a pervert, and would either be thrown out of her house, or at the mercy of her taunting, belittling remarks for the rest of the day.
All were bad situations, so he remained frozen, staring as she breathed onto his neck. Once more, he wondered how he found himself in these situations, and curled the fingers off his right arm. Since he had stolen the pillow at some point, she had propped her cheek onto the padding of his shoulder bringing her surprisingly too close for comfort and he felt like he was being strangled in her scent and warmth and, oh man this was not comfortable at all; what was he thinking?!
Nervously, he retracted his arm from around her back, where she shifted from the sudden cold, and then gently wiggled the pillow from underneath his head, to below his shoulder, where he somehow managed to maneuver it beneath her head without disturbing her.
Under normal circumstances, he might have just woken her up, told her that she was 'being weird' and made a huge joke about their predicament; laughed about it... however, due to the fact she, they had been up for well over twenty-four hours prior, he would have felt guilty for waking her up—especially when she was so peaceful.
Her legs were another matter entirely. She had parked her right leg between his, which had issues he was physically uncomfortable with, but he managed to untangle her limbs rather easily—a little too easily; but if she was as tired as he thought that she was, not even the light sleeper would wake up from his disheveled movements.
After escaping, he looked over at her sleeping figure, unmoved and curled up. Her legs were exposed to the weather, and the house wasn't exactly warm, so he flipped the blankets that had been stuffed to the edge of the bed over her body, and gently tucked the sides over her. He grabbed his hat from the corner of the bed, and tugged it back on complacently as he watched her subtle breaths.
Slowly, he lowered himself to her face once more, and without thinking much about it, he kissed her cheek—more to test his own bravery, less because he thought it was a good idea. Though seconds after, his trance had all but dissolved and he stumbled away with the speed and grace of a houndour, all while muttering incoherently and covering his face and judging his own actions.
Had he stayed for even a second longer, he would have seen her face light up like a christmas tree, and her nose scrunch up. Her hand raced to her right cheek, where he had planted a damp, endearing kiss onto her cheek. Not a peck—a lingering, thoughtful, maybe experimental kiss that gave her gooseflesh faster than the cold ever could.
She had been playing possum since he tried to drop her head onto the pillow. Face beet red, she covered it with her palms and curled into a ball beneath the blankets. What was she supposed to do? Wake up while he was trying so carefully not to wake her? He was twice as awkward as her, he might have actually imploded.
"How did you sleep?" she would have to ask so innocently, because that would have gone wonderfully for the both of them! It wasn't like he had manhandled her in his sleep and pulled her close earlier, the change in positions had been unconsciously mutual for the duo, and that was only more odd.
Misty swallowed, turning over to look at the stairs Ash had descended moments ago. Face hot, she curled her lips and tucked the blanket over her head, mortified. She decided that moment, she would sleep for the rest of the day, or forever.
XOXS
While he thought Misty was still sleeping, he stumbled down the thin attic stairs, listening for togepi and pikachu below. He could hear Misty's sisters unpacking boxes in the kitchen, and the faint shrills and squeaks of togepi and pikachu, and so he relaxed. Rubbing his face, he found his way to the washroom.
Unable to force herself back into a slumber, Misty decided that now was better than never, and it was best that she did not stew over the current events. She had a lot to prepare for, and she didn't have time to think about what was going on between them. Whatever it was, it would have to wait until after she accepted her mantra as Elite Four.
Quietly, Misty compiled her thoughts, threw off yesterdays red tank-top and shorts in favor of a simple black tee-shirt, and short blue jeans before stumbling down the stairs.
Ash took care of his business, and washed his face. He was in need of a shower, but knew that despite his need, there was no logical way. The shower was crowded with brown boxes, the sink counter was littered with bottles of goo and other feminine products, so he had to maneuver his way around the frills. Hesitantly, he looked at himself in the mirror. His hair was matted down by his hat, long enough that when it was pulled from its ponytail it hung over his shoulder. His eyes still had traces of black rings around them due to lack of sleep-even after his short nap.
Staring back at him was the complacent image of older Ash. Adult Ash. Who he was now. Long gone were his childish, puffy cheeks and wide eyes—replaced instead with smooth cheek bones and narrowed, sultry eyes. He ran his fingers down his jaw bone; even after years of sleeping, not an inch of facial hair emerged. He knew that wasn't uncommon—he had been told by the physical therapist that along with his height, some other things would take awhile to catch up with his maturing body. He figured facial hair was one of those things.
Outside of her appearance, Misty hadn't really changed that much at all, she was still her same determined, sarcastic self; even though everything else around her was changing, it didn't change the same comfortable feeling he had when ever she was around her. Home was much less of where he was, and more of who he was around. Maybe he should have been a little more sad than he was to see the gym go—it had been the first welcoming place he went to since he woke up, but in reality... Ash pulled open the washroom door just in time to see Misty's sea-green eyes staring up at him and something twisted and pulled in Ash's chest to the point that he laughed at his former predicament under his breath and grinned at her.
"...Could..." She started, a little flustered. "...Stop being so..." She muttered half under her breath, Ash could barely hear her.
"..What?" he asked, blinking several times before she threw her fists down and stomped her foot.
"Stop being so weird!" She yelped with her heart racing and then stormed past him and into the washroom, nearly knocking Ash over.
Strangely, her reaction seemed forced, maybe a little hostile. Expected. Nervously, Ash rubbed the back of his neck and then awkwardly started down the next set of stairs to the kitchen. Misty hadn't had her morning coffee yet, which would explain the mood swing.
As he made the trek into the kitchen, he watched the three sisters argue about lunch—Lily was diligently trying to cut a french loaf while Daisy grumbled about soup, and Violet unpacked the plates and cutlery. Ash wasn't disappointed, because it wasn't the gym he was attached to. Looking at the sisters he made himself known by taking a seat at their makeshift table of boxes, and rested his elbows on top.
"Oh, looks like the lovebirds finally woke up." Lily uttered with wiggling eyebrows.
With a blush, Ash's face fell to the boxes a second later as Misty emerged tensely around the corner just in time to hear the remark.
"What was that Lily? You left us alone to finish packing up your things?" Misty bellowed with a venomous tone. "We should leave you girls alone to unpack the truck? How kind of you." Misty sneered sarcastically while resting her hand on her sisters back. A warning. Lily shuddered in response and then glanced at her youngest sister.
"And I thought you two had to work?" Misty called out mercilessly while Daisy and Violet's backs straightened. "Or was that a petty excuse so you could run back to your hotel room and get a decent night of sleep while we worked until ungodly hours of the night?" She hissed and Ash sat up as pikachu crawled into his lap.
"Brutal." he muttered under his breath, watching as Misty skillfully tore down her sisters iridescent acts of superiority.
"Sorry Misty... you know how we get when we're tired..." Daisy tried but the violent twitch of Misty's right eyebrow shushed her, as she hurried out of the kitchen, masking some excuse.
"Anyone else feel like putting in their two cents?" Misty challenged, turning to the counter to start her meal prep so they could begin the day.
Ash's mouth opened before his brain could advise him not to. "You are a lot nicer when you're asleep."
She spun on her heels at him, and for a singular moment, he was positive he saw hell behind her eyes. She raised the knife she had started cutting her bread with for comedic effect.
"Don't start with me, Ketchum." She hissed and Ash coiled down in his seat while she returned to slamming sandwiches together, much less placing them.
While Ash was fearfully sitting at the edge of his seat, prepared to run, Daisy looked on from the doorway with a carefully narrowed eye. Misty's reaction was so peculiar compared to usual. It wasn't like this was the first time they teased their baby sister about Ash. Daisy felt her lips curl in happiness as she turned to start unpacking boxes in the living room. Her sister could be so stubborn sometimes.
XOXs
Misty's awkwardness hadn't faltered for the remainder of the day, and it was becoming glaringly obvious to Ash who had tried to speak with her on several occasions that afternoon, but she always seemed to escape. It was almost like she was intentionally avoiding him! But why would she do that? They were perfectly normal last night, why was it such a big deal to talk to him now? He deduced that what ever issue that she was having, it revolved around him—because if it had been about her sisters, she would have vented at him, not avoided him at every corner.
They worked endlessly until midnight, Daisy, Lily, and Violet focused mostly on their bedrooms. Misty demanded that Ash stay in the living room—or more accurately—stay away from her, while she spent her time unpacking the bathrooms.
Given Misty's job, she was the first to shower. In order to spare Ash the hours of waiting for the three sisters, Ash showered next—but he used the washroom down stairs. Since Misty was clearly against speaking with him, to the point that when she did finally call it quits for the day, she sulked into her bedroom without a single word to him. Thus, leaving Daisy to prepare the couch for Ash.
The eldest did so happily, but Ash seemed to be a bit of a grouch while tucking pikachu into his jacket and taking a seat. Surrounded by boxes, it was nothing compared to Misty's bedroom, but he couldn't complain, he had a roof over his head. However, she even took togepi, but didn't say anything to him after this morning. What had he done to cause such a horrible reaction? Did she wait to get mad at him until now? She stalled until he finished helping her move so that she could release all of her pint up frustration today?
Catching onto his mood, Daisy took a seat beside him on the emerald green sofa after fluffing the spare pillow she was letting him use.
"What's wrong?" She asked in a tone so sweet Ash felt his skin crawl.
"Ahh, nothing." he tried, but pikachu was his tell. The mouse looked at Daisy, and tried to explain Ash and Misty's oddity, but Daisy, who didn't understand pokemon at all, waved piakchu into her lap where she scratched behind his ears.
"Don't take it to heart, Ash." Daisy offered quietly. "Misty's a temperamental person sometimes. She always has been since we were kids... little things set her off. Topple that with the overload of stress she's been thrown into because of her new position and she's a little moody."
"She was fine yesterday." Ash grumbled, crossing his arms.
Daisy chuckled while covering her mouth. "You did not see her yesterday morning. When she saw that we didn't have everything packed, she went into crazy, obsessive compulsive, 'gym leader Misty' mode and turned into a slave driver. It was a nightmare, if you can imagine." Daisy whispered the last part, as if she was worried that Misty, up in her room, could hear her complain.
Ash grinned at Daisy's description while shaking his head.
"She lightened up a lot when you came back. Like, a lot." Daisy assured while she gestured with her hands and then nudged him. "She missed you."
"She has a funny way of showing it." Ash complained, knowing Daisy was a very reliable confidant. The blonde exhaled.
"Well, did you do something to incur such a reaction?"
"No!" Ash denied quickly, too quickly. What could he have done to anger Misty? He had been nothing but polite.
"..." she raised her eyebrows. "Are you sure?" She asked in a low, knowing voice that pulled Ash's attention back to the kiss—but she had been a sleep...Unless she wasn't. Ash face palmed, and Daisy pat his shoulders appreciatively, knowing that he realized whatever his mistake was.
"Oh, you two are so adorable." Standing up she gave one more look at Ash and smiled. "Get some sleep, she'll be fine in the morning."
Yet Ash didn't feel like she would be. He felt so embarrassed—should he apologize? He hadn't been thinking when he did it—in fact, he had all but forgotten about his brief moment of complete insanity. Holding his face, Daisy shut the light out as she ascended the stairs, leaving Ash alone with his thoughts.
This was supposed to be resolved; Misty, and her sisters were the closet things that Ash had to a family right now; they were home. They were familiar, they were frustratingly carefree, and they were home. This was home; not the gym, not Cerulean City, but them. And realizing that was supposed to stop these weird feelings in his stomach. But he didn't get that way with her sisters, he didn't worry if Daisy wouldn't talk to him, he didn't care if Lily avoided him, and he wasn't against Violet ignoring him. The moment that Misty did any of those things however, it was like getting punched in the gut several times. People did like to assume and make obvious jabs at their curious friendship—if it wasn't motherly, then it was...
So...maybe he did like Misty...what was he supposed to do about it? She was his best friend, quite possibly his only friend, but why did it feel like such a twisted, barbed feeling embedded deep into his chest? He felt like he was drowning and flying at the same time. Like his mind would explode but his nerves would freeze; his entire body was confused and it was her fault. He wasn't in complete control of his actions this morning. With a loud groan, he smothered his face with his pillow. So he kissed her. On the cheek. It wasn't like he kissed her on the lips or—His face flushed for even thinking of the incident and he groaned again in embarrassment. People in France did it all the time! He tried arguing with himself. It was normal to greet people like that, so... so... his entire body felt hot while he curled into the couch. If it was so weird maybe she should have said something to him! Not ignore him after he was gone for so long.
...well, maybe he deserved it; he did intentionally avoid her for eight months with a few fleeting phone calls and random letters—maybe this was karma's sweet justice. He would have the ability to finally understand his situation, and he would in the same breath ruin it. That would be his luck.
"Agghh, this is hopeless." He muttered breathlessly, feeling strangled.
"Pikapika, pikachu." The pokemon murmured against Ash's chest, telling his trainer to go to sleep—but sleep was far from Ash's mind.
XOXs
Around 2:00am, Ash gave up, it would be a very long night, and really, who needed sleep anyways? Ash slept for ten years, he would be fine. Or at least that's what he told himself.
His feelings were unmanageable, uncommon, and frankly, a little weird. He couldn't sleep, at least not in the same house or vicinity as the redhead.
"Chaaa." The mouse whined, calling his trainer immature while rubbing his paw against his eye, but Ash glared at pikachu. They were seated together on the deck in the backyard, over looking the forest behind the girls' house. They had a simple wooden fence, two large peach trees, a small area for a garden beside the south fence line, and a yard full of grass. It was plain, unlike the cerulean gym.
"Well, what would you do pikachu?" Ash hummed, kicking his feet.
"Pikaa, pika chu." He explained, telling Ash to talk whatever he was feeling over with Misty.
Ash frowned. "I've been trying all day, and yesterday but... We've been busy, and she's..."
"Pika." Ash picked up the mouse to stare directly into his brown eyes, and then set the pokemon beside him on the deck before crossing his arms. Coward was what pikachu had said—but there was nothing cowardly about being scared of ruining the one actual friendship he had. Then again, Misty was a mature woman; even if she did flatten him with complete, and utter rejection she would most likely still...
Ash threw his hands up and jumped up to his feet at the same time; he wasn't thinking straight. He was obviously going out of his mind; when he was hit by that harpoon and stranded in the middle of the ocean what ever realization he thought that he had was because of the fever and chill; nothing less, nothing more.
Yet, here he was, convinced. He turned his gaze upward to the back window of her 'bedroom' in the attic and huffed, feeling his entire body tingle at the thoughts in his mind. All the while, pikachu stared at him with a mocking, superior gaze.
"Cha..." it grunted, and Ash pointed at pikachu.
"You know what? We should train."
"...Pika..." The mouse whined as Ash picked him up by the ribs and placed him on the ground. "We will practice some techniques like we did in France." Ash muttered optimistically while summoning chimchar.
The small monkey waved at Ash while wiping his tired eyes, then looked questioningly at pikachu.
"Pika." The mouse confirmed, concluding that Ash had finally lost his mind.
Ash wasn't listening to the talk while he inhaled sharply and then exhaled. "Alright you two, let's take it from the top!" Ash cheered a little too enthusiastically for 2:00am in the morning and his pokemon shared a look of deep concern and mild frustration. The things they did for their trainer...
XOXs
Misty hadn't been sleeping, at least not really. She felt cold everywhere, even after she managed to set her bed and mattress up. Something was off, and the worst feeling was that she knew exactly what was missing and it killed her. It had only happened maybe a handful of times and she was already so damn dependent. That wasn't like her.
This whole day wasn't like her at all! She hadn't had such a tantrum since she was eleven and then Ash shows up and...
Zap.
Her eyes took a moment to focus as she peered into the darkness at the window across from her bed, overlooking the back yard. An assortment of lights came to her attention while she peeled off her sheets to see what was happening. A power outage? As she neared the window, the faint sounds of Ash's voice made her head click against the wall—if she could hear him from up here, she could only imagine her sisters.
"Damn it, Ash." Misty grunted, knowing well that he had an act for waking up in the middle of the night for strange tasks when they were living at the gym, but doing so in a small town like this outside where their neighbors could see the lights and hear everything probably wasn't his smartest move of the day—not that he had technically done anything wrong.. She just wanted to-
Whoa there Misty, don't get ahead of yourself. She chanted to herself in her thoughts while pulling on her red sneakers. Stay focused. She added, thinking of her position as Elite Four and the duties that would ultimately come from accepting the title—as well as the possible risks.
She wound herself down the stairs skillfully, dodged through her sisters bedrooms to make sure none of the sensational women had woken up, and then quickly foot her way through the back door, taking a stand on the deck where she saw Ash moving with chimchar to demonstrate a technique the pokemon hadn't learned—not exactly the best way to teach a pokemon, but it was effective. Seconds later, chimchar let out another bright flame getting cheers and applause from Ash.
Seconds later, Misty threw up her hands to hiss a loud "shh" and Ash all but tripped over himself.
"M-misty, what are you doing up?" He stammered, ruffling his hatless hair—this was just his luck.
"Kind of hard to sleep with the noise and fancy light show." She gestured to chimchar and pikachu who both blushed bashfully, matching Ash's expression as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"...I hadn't thought."
"Have you gone to sleep yet?" She asked, tapping her wrist gently.
His gaze drifted, eyes darted away. The black rings under his eyes had grown and Misty let out a sharp hiss of a sigh.
"You shouldn't stay up so late. You'll make yourself ill."
"I'll be fine." He muttered, feeling a bit more defensive than he should have.
She matched his tone with an unimpressed look. "You need to take care of yourself."
"I have been." he added, shuffling his pokemon to the far end of the yard with no intention of going to sleep. Misty watched him while she stepped down the last of the stairs, and crossed her arms. Summer nights were always warm, so the fear of cold meant nothing as she nodded her head at him. She could, and she would take mercy on him tonight—reminding herself once again that he had not actually done anything wrong; even if it was weird.
"What are you trying to teach them?" She asked, looking at the two pokemon in question. Ash hummed happily in response.
"Chimchar has been working on mach punch, and pikachu has been working on iron tail and electro ball." he said proudly, squatting down to the small pokemons level to rub their scalps affectionately.
Misty traveled the distance between them, and squat beside him—much to his discomfort. When their arms brushed, he almost crawled out of his skin.
"Those are pretty high level moves." Misty observed, resting her chin in her palm. "Did they know them in your dreams?"
Ash nodded. "Yes, but I'm finding that doesn't always mean they can learn them now. I think sometimes I influenced what they knew quite a bit."
Misty watched them carefully. "Mach punch can't be learned by a chimchar—not usually." Misty said knowingly. "I've never heard of a pikachu using iron tail before." she mused impressed, sending a strange sense of satisfaction into his bones, as well as pride for his pokemon who scratched his ears affectionately.
"I guess you might not have been a chimchar when we learned mach punch, buddy..." Ash mumbled while the ape threw up his arms knowingly, not ready to give up.
"If you're going to train you shouldn't do it so late." Misty said suddenly after staring at his face. Ash scoffed and glared at her.
"It's only..." He strayed off, thinking of the time.
"3:00am." she scolded, and Ash's head drooped low.
"It's already been that long?" Ash asked nervously and she gasped.
"How long have you been out here?"
"That's not important." Ash said weakly, looking away from her and scratching his chin innocently. Misty exhaled and rose to her feet, crossing her arms.
"Well, I guess it can't be helped then." She hummed. "I'll train with you."
Ash was at his feet seconds later, arms crossed protectively. "Misty I sad that I'm fin—oh." he interrupted himself, realizing her words. "Oh." He added, elated. "Really?"
"Why not? You weren't able to battle when you were at the gym before, and I need the practice since I haven't been battling on a regular basis after joining the academy." She paused for a long moment, scooping up pikachu as she walked to the back gate. "Besides, I'm dying to see that greninja of yours." Misty uttered sinfully, though while chimchar found a perch on Ash's shoulder, he looked at her fading back with pathetic eyes.
Whereas Ash told her that he had a greninja, he neglected to mention that it wasn't exactly speaking with him right now.
XOXS
Misty led him through the forest easily enough; the moon was bright and the sky was clear, so most of the path had been illuminated by the glow of the rocks above. They finally stopped in an open fiend about a mile out from her house when Ash finally broke the silence.
"About greninja.." Ash began, fidgeting. Misty looked over her shoulder at him, blinking a few times.
"What about him?"
"Well.. he's not really.. he hasn't left his pokeball since I caught him." He murmured, covering his mouth with his fingers thoughtfully.
Misty exhaled and looked to him with sympathetic eyes. "Why?"
A shrug. "He won't say." Knowing there was more to it than that, Ash inhaled and slouched. "Well, actually. He was injured when I caught him, I think he might have been being chased by the police or something and uh...he seemed upset that I didn't go get him first."
Misty leaned back, looking Ash over once, and then pursed her lips. "Is there a reason he might have felt more important than your other pokemon?"
"Well, none of my pokemon really knew that I existed, but I think... no, I know greninja did. He followed me around France long before he approached me."
Misty sat thoughtfully on the stump of a tree that had been cut down, and crossed one leg over the other and leaned forward, jaw cocked. "Why would he know if none of the rest of your pokemon did?"
Ash's face flushed red while he shuffled his feet nervously. "Mega evolution..." He mumbled under his breath. Alarmed and a little taken aback, Misty scoffed.
"I'm sorry?" She questioned if she heard him right.
"Mega evolution." Ash reiterated, walking towards her. Pikachu crawled from her arms and onto the ground where chimchar watched the duo.
"There haven't been records of mega stones in decades—maybe even centuries, Ash." Misty said matter-of-fact and Ash rolled his eyes thoughtlessly. Even he knew that.
"I know... but it wasn't really a mega evolution—I didn't have to use a stone. It was more like... a feeling? An aura or something that we shared for a short time..." He mumbled, and Misty tapped her foot on the ground.
"An aura?" She giggled, earning a scornful look from Ash. "Well, as much as it seems farfetched in this world, it might have been possible in your dream world—maybe greninja felt more connected to you because you shared that bond?" She suggested with squinted eyes. Sluggishly, Ash limped beside her, knocking her over a little to take a seat beside her on the large stump and exhaled while looking up at the stars.
"I guess I hadn't thought about it like that..."
"Sometimes when you leave the ones who know and care about you, they get confused and worked up." Misty explained softly. "Maybe he thought you abandoned him, and he woke up in a strange and different world than he remembered without his trainer. It was probably devastating, then on top of that, he realized that instead of coming to find him first, you made a few detours."
"Pika pikachu." The mouse hummed below while chimchar nodded in agreement with the observation.
Slowly, Ash looked down at his lap, and then reached around his person to reveal the pokeball which kept greninja sealed away, and he blinked once or twice, with the support of pikachu and chimchar at his feet.
"I didn't mean to." Ash muttered. "...I didn't even know myself." He corrected, gliding his thumb down the red sphere. Misty nodded beside him.
"Right, but he probably hasn't realized that yet." She reassured him, patting him on the shoulder. "Did you heal him?"
"Of course." Ash snapped defensively, though not on purpose. Misty didn't seem to take offense, and watched him with neutral eyes. "I mean, yes. But he still wont come when I summon him."
"Then maybe you need to make him?" She suggested while standing.
His eyebrows furrowed; "how?"
"Well, if I remember from what you said correctly..." She staggered off thinking of their time at the hospital when Ash was much more open about his dreams. "Greninja picked you, didn't he?"
"So?"
"Then maybe he's waiting for the real you, and that might mean reminding him that the dream counterpart he knew is truly the same one as the one standing here now."
At first he was going to be witty, ask where her philosophical views came from—but the woman had always had some degree of higher understanding than Ash did, so instead, he blinked at her. It made sense, a little bit, the whole time he had been awake he had been drawing a fine line between who he was in his dreams and who he was now—viewing them as separate beings entirely; the world, and himself were different. However, they weren't really. He was the person in his dreams, and while the world was different, it wasn't wrong. Ash rose a second later and looked at Misty determined.
"We'll give it a try!" Ash mused, pumping his fist out. Misty clapped her hands gleefully, and closed her eyes.
"Great! Then we'll battle!"
His fist fell. "Right now?"
"Right now!" She sung, walking the distance to the far end of the field.
"Misty, it's late..." he tried, but she shrugged while revealing a pokeball and Ash felt his stomach sink a little—he had never battled Misty, only watched, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't a little nervous.
"Are you planning on going to sleep right away?" She asked skeptically, eyebrows raised.
He gawked at her, "Well, no, but!"
"Just battle me, Ash." She muttered while crossing her arms. "..or are you chicken?"
Her words echoed in his mind and he inhaled sharply. "I am not! You're going down!" he challenged her, spinning greninja's ball on his finger tip.
"It'll be a one versus one match; we'll use official league rules, which means that you'll need your pokedex." She revealed hers from her back pocket, and Ash fished his out of his own and held it out.
"How does that work?"
Misty clicked a few buttons on hers which connected to his pokedex via air waves, and he raised his eyebrows. She tapped her toes on the ground, "The rules are simple; in an official league match you are only allowed to use the four techniques registered to your pokemon in your pokedex." She hummed, cracking her neck and stretching every which way. "This doesn't account for strategy oriented commands, and the occasional simple physical attack such as tackle."
"Usually, when you step onto a platform in a gym, your pokedex with automatically connect to the computer system in the gym that will show a screen of your pokemon's registered health and level. However, since we don't have that, our pokedexs will do the work for us. Basically, it will help prevent over exhaustion or death. When the pokemon's health meter runs out, the connection the pokemon has to the pokeball will automatically alert you that the pokemon is unable to battle and you will have to return the pokemon."
"I know that, Misty. This isn't the first time I've battled." He chided her with a narrowed eye. Misty shrugged.
"I figured as much, but I don't want you complaining that this wasn't a fair fight." She barked with a sinister grin. "As you know, all battles are connected via pokedex to account for wins and losses, that way credits are transferred automatically between licensed trainers."
"What happens if I use an attack that isn't registered to my pokemon?" Ash inquired with raised eyebrows.
"Then technically that means you can be disqualified and fined; and I would be the automatic winner." Misty hummed. "However, I can't technically stop you—that's between you and your pokemon." Misty warned him, though that would not be necessary. Ash had no intention to cheat.
"Alright, then let's get started!"
"As the experienced trainer, I'll choose my pokemon first." Misty declared, swinging her arm back to extend the throw of the pokeball in her hand; the ball soared through the sky, then landed with a splash against the grass, and then erupted in a bright display of reds, where the pointed figure of starmie stood ready in front of Ash.
"Starmie!" Ash gasped, and Misty raised her eyebrows.
"That's my line!" She growled playfully, though Ash could see the determination and excitement in her eyes from across the way, and he returned the same determination as he inhaled. Misty was nothing if not a fierce battler.
"Alright greninja, if you're ready..." He squeezed the ball, hoping that greninja would hear him. "Then come on out!" He shouted and threw the ball.
For a moment, the ball landed with a thump and nothing happened. Ash felt his stomach twist uncomfortably, but Misty piped in.
"You can't turn down a challenge!" Misty shouted, and then as if on cue, the ball erupted in a faint red light, and standing across from starmie was a provoked, lanky blue and yellow frog pokemon. He knelt on the ground, glaring upward at Misty who could only cross her arms in response.
"Greninja!" Ash gasped, elated. "You actually-"
He didn't have time to speak before the ninja pokemon shot forward without command, lunging itself at starmie.
"Starmie dodge left and use rapid spin!" Misty called automatically before greninja even had a full foot from the ground; the star pokemon spun sideways, picking up speed before using greninja's failed attempt to land a pound attack as an opening to thrust into the pokemon. Greninja staggered backwards, holding its side from the twisted tackle and then shook its head to clear its mind.
"Greninja wait don't-" Ash tried, but the pokemon twisted forward carelessly, only to be knocked back once more with another quick rapid spin. The attack would hit twice, and unless greninja moved, the momentum driven tackle would land again.
Luckily, the frog saw this and jumped up, avoiding starmie's third lunge, but Misty had already folded her hands over her chest when starmie landed about a foot away from the hovering pokemon.
"Knock it out of the air with hydro pump!" She called, watching the panic surface in greninja's eyes as it realized it wasn't going to have time to move out of the way from the attack. When the torrent of water struck, greninja flew upward violently, before landing solidly on the ground with a loud thud, leaving Ash and Misty staring profusely.
"Piiikaa!" pikachu whined at Misty, calling her attacked cruel—but they weren't. Greninja did attack first—and without being told you.
Had the trainer in control of the pokemon been anyone other than Ash, she might have scolded him for a blatant disregard of respect or the rules, but Ash seemed to be beating himself up enough.
"Greninja you have to listen to me!" He shouted, throwing his fists down as the pokemon was slow to rise—already, Misty could have finished the pokemon, but she waited. This battle wasn't about winning. Ash's words fell on deaf ears as greninja pressed forward once more, this time using another water pulse. Misty raised her hand.
"Hydro pump!" She called, watching as the two spurts of water clashed. Ash was growling by this point, looking at Misty with tempered eyes—really though, he couldn't complain to her—she was defending whereas greninja was...
"If we don't work together you're going to lose!" Ash shouted in frustration at the frog. "I'm sorry you felt like I forgot about you, but if you would listen to me, to our friends, you would know that I didn't mean to! I didn't betray you, and I never went a day without thinking about you and everyone else but I wasn't able-" He shook his head catching a glimpse of greninja and his shoulders slumped.
"I did my best, and I should have tried harder to find you—I should have known you were real like you knew that I was but..." he paused, looking down pathetically, drained. "I can only promise to do better from now on! I'm here now!" he shouted, reaching out for the pokemon.
Kneeling, greninja looked at Ash with worried, pained eyes. Beside him, chimchar and pikachu rested, where pikachu shouted his support and validation, as well as chimchar. The monkey expressed his own issues to greninja, followed by pikachu's explanation, and on the pokemon's face a look of desolation appeared. Shame. He had been thinking only of himself, whereas Ash had many other friends that also looked at him for support.
It hurt knowing that Ash chose to search for everyone else before him, but with a steady mind, greninja rose to his feet and looked at Ash earnestly; at the trainer he chose. This Ash was different, he spoke differently and acted differently, but his eyes were the same—they were the same. Still one as trainer and pokemon; regardless of the time spent alone, Ash still understood greninja's need to succeed and greninja knew Ash's desire to help.
Misty tried to keep her laughter down to a minimum, she couldn't believe her eyes. They stalled a battle to talk to one another. Not to discipline and not return the pokemon—but to talk. She snickered in the back of her mind at Ash's antics. He would be the only trainer in the world to have such a calm disposition during the middle of a fight. However, she watched as greninja dipped his head low, as if asking for forgiveness for his actions, and she shuddered.
"Alright.." Ash hummed, getting the message. "Then let's work together."
"So round two then?" Misty grinned, hands on her hips.
"Round two!" Ash called, pumping his first forward as greninja mimicked the move. Misty's eyes narrowed slowly. "You ready buddy?"
The silent pokemon nodded, and then Ash inhaled. "Use double team!"
So he was going to be offense, huh? Maybe it was the sleep deprivation but Misty didn't call for starmie to attack right away, her mind stalled—or perhaps, maybe it was because greninja's speed was flawless, she had no idea which copy was the real one.
Her mouth opened a second too late when Ash pointed down at starmie.
"Now use pound!" Ash yelled, and moments later, the greninja to the left of starmie lunged, pressing a solid fist into the pokemon's jewel, slamming it into the ground. Dust rose from the field, cutting the grass with its sharpened edges as greninja bounced backwards, reeling joyfully in his eyes when he finally landed a hit—Ash shared the expression.
"Did I catch you off guard?" Ash asked mockingly and Misty all but growled.
"You wish." She grunted, taking a step back. "Starmie use rapid spin!" Again, the pokemon shot forward from the ground, thrown forward at an intense speed that Ash inhaled for and took a few steps back to be in the clear from the move.
"Greninja duck!" Ash called, "then when its over you use pound again!"
"That's dirty!" Misty called back exasperated as the frog shrunk low to the ground when starmie's rapid spin coiled above him. Once more, greninja landed another critical hit on the jewel, this time sending it flying directly above. Though, Misty didn't seem surprised by the notion as a grin tugged on her lips.
"Starmie!" She called before Ash could have a breath of relief. "Use thunder!"
Starmie was only a foot above greninja, its body stiffened, and came to life with an electrical charge that brought a roar of energy from each point of its body, and before Ash could get a word in edge wise, the attack was set lose like a canon.
"Greninja!" side step and counter with water shuriken... Ash wanted to shout, but the intense blare of lightning striking the ground erupted a spell of wind that doused the trainers, leaving Misty all but smirking at her 'victory'.
However, when the glare ended, her mouth fell open.
"Chaa!" Pikachu squealed alerting Ash so when he lowered his arm he saw that greninja had managed to roll away in time, and counter with an attack of his own that sent starmie into a tree; leaving the jewel blinking back at them. Greninja's right foot was numb with electricity as it knelt, his movements all but stunted. Greninja pressed its fingers into the soil to stare down starmie.
Misty pursed her lips for a moment, as if she would call one last move—but instead, her hand slipped down as if thinking better of it, and she removed the pokeball from her belt to return the star. She stuck up her nose, relaxed her shoulders, and glared kindly at greninja and Ash who hadn't realized yet that they won.
Ash was slouched over, almost like the ape at his feet when he straightened, and then threw up his arms. He all but danced to greninja's side, and grabbed the pokemon in a tight hug.
"We did it!" he chirped happily and Misty grinned at the sight. A grown man hugging a pokemon that stood at least four foot, and in return, the pokemon returned the embrace lovingly; eyes closed and grateful. With the expression, Misty's heart eased. Ash was so easy to forgive and forget—he really loved his pokemon. For once, Misty had been glad she was right—he just needed a little push.
As the dust settled and starmie was neatly tucked back into his ball, Misty approached Ash with an earnest grin. "I wasn't expecting that."
"You let your guard down."
"I might have gotten a little cocky..." She muttered, sighing dramatically while rubbing her face. She looked directly at greninja next. "You did a great job yourself." She said with a curt smile. Awkwardly, the pokemon's face flushed as it bowed to her in gratitude and Ash rubbed the back of his neck.
"It was a great battle regardless, huh greninja?" Ash asked with a gleaming smile that the ninja returned with a nod of appreciation. With their connection reestablished, Ash placed a firm had on the pokemon's shoulder, and then returned him so that he could rest.
"You two were terrible at the start..." Misty warned Ash, one eyebrow raised. "But you brought it back in the second half after that corny speech."
Ash blushed immensely and glared at her. "It wasn't corny!"
"It was corny. I thought I walked into a drama." she sneered sarcastically with a wave of her hand.
"Misty!" Ash gasped, his face darkening. "You're just a sore loser!"
She grinned at him, and rubbed his scalp playfully, her teeth grit together tightly. "I am a little bit! I lost to a novice and I'm supposed to be an Elite Four member!"
Ash swat her hand away gently and peered at her. "Just goes to show you can always learn more."
Misty inhaled. "I know..." She heaved a sigh and looked up at the rising sun with narrowed eyes. A second later, she removed the water droplet necklace from over her head, and then without warning dropped it over Ash's. He shook his head clear of the disruption and glared seemingly at her.
"What's this?" He murmured, looking down at the necklace briefly.
"The cascade badge."
"Misty, this is-"
"Don't argue with me." She growled. "Just say thank you."
Stammering, he looked at her with a great sense of devotion, his mouth opening and closing several times before he reeled backwards, looking up at her with a questioning gaze.
"Misty." He fumbled, taking her hand which had been pressed against his shoulder and bringing it down into his to squeeze. Her face turned red, and she felt the urge to retract her hand and run, but he held her firm.
"I need to talk to you." he gasped, she swallowed the lump in her throat, and kept herself still.
"About what?" She stammered quietly, her voice barely audible.
"I have... I think..." He paused, trying to collect the right words—since they were still technically scrambled in his own mind, saying them was like getting kicked in the shin several times. "...I think I like..." his eyes made their way to hers, the same sea-green eyes that peered in through the cracked door when he laid tiredly in a hospital bed. The eyes that watched over him while he healed, glared at him when he did wrong. Stared at him, not around him or through him.
"You like what?" Misty questioned, eyebrows raised.
Misty, who for the last year constantly put Ash first to help him, house him, and then travel with him. Who stayed up late with him when he couldn't sleep, laughed with him when he was sad, and stood beside him when his family turned the other direction. His best friend, whether he asked her to or not. Now he was going to be selfish a little more, and instead of letting her focus on herself, on her new job and on the adventure they would be embarking on to stop Team Rocket, if they really did exist...he was going to ruin all of that by taking another full step in front of her. How could he do that to her, what if she rejected him—what if she didn't? He recalled what Daisy had told him before and wondered how this would reflect on her stress level if something...
He lost his nerve and his stomach turned in knots. His entire body shook and his palms felt sweaty. If he was stressed out, how would Misty react?
"I like y...our hair." he weaseled out.
Suddenly, Misty took a step back, snatching her hand away from his with a bemused expression. "What?" She snapped, maybe a little disappointed in his confession.
Ash stammered while beside him both chimchar and pikachu slapped their foreheads. "I mean, I like..." he tried once more, but the words wouldn't come. "It's just that it's so orange now."
"My hair is not orange!" She shouted, turning away from him, the blush over her cheeks receding. She touched her hair with her hands and Ash panicked.
"Orange isn't a bad thing!"
"I can't believe it's so noticeable, I haven't had time to dye it!" She paused her exclamation to glare at him hurtfully. "You know I hate my hair color, Ash!" She hissed, sounding more like a girl than she had all night. Ash laughed nervously and followed after her as she stomped back to her house.
"It's not a bad thing! It looks nice!"
Chimchar rubbed his face, having only witnessed this once. Pikachu had folded his paws over one another and nodded to his monkey companion. This was far from abnormal, and if anything, was a common theme in the duo's relationship.
Author's Note:
I'm such a sucker for cliché moments (referring to the typical she fell asleep, he fell asleep, somehow they were asleep with each other.) That's twice in one story. Do I hear a third? -shot-
I felt like I needed to give Ash some moments of 'happiness' where he is genuinely accepted and having a normal life. I wanted to bring in the issue with greninja (partially resolve it, but we get more into that next chapter) and by popular request, I threw in a bit about mega evolution. (no, I don't think it would work like it does in the anime... More on that later though-cough-)
Like pikachu, I felt like Greninja had a really, reaaally close bond with Ash (to be able to mega evolution, c'mon) so the pokemon (who knew Ash was real from the start) felt a bit betrayed that Ash wouldn't come to him first. However, he realizes he was stupid for thinking this way, and they defeat Misty.
LITTLE EASY ON THE POKESHIPPING THERE NINT. (my hand slipped)
Little baby Ash knows he has feelings for Misty now (what's he gonna think about now?) ;w; but he chose not to say anything until after the party because she's been so stressed (and really, they have more important things to think about); he's such a pal! I hope that didn't seem too forced. I almost felt like it was a little too dragged out but I regret nooooothinggggg!
NINT