Disclaimer: never did and never will own Pokemon

Notes: The story has gotten very dramatic. Ash left, and Misty's leaving. Let's see who's left? Brock, no problem there; Max, nope; Pikachu, you've got to be kidding me; well that only leaves… May. May... let's see what happens with her shall we?

Thought
"Speaking"
Emphasis
(God's Voice... well maybe not)

A Forgotten Face
Ch. 7 A Scar Always Follows (Edit: Previously as a joke I had fake title names here Smile)
Two loves separated. Hurt, betrayal, and uncertainty remain in their hearts. Ash and Misty left each other, never to see the other again. All was lost in the thought of love.
"So where did that bitch go?" May was feeling better but still had numerous bruises and cuts. Her black eye was as swollen as ever. Well I guess she had to run... I so would have repaid her for this. She looked at Brock but was surprised to see him looking like he was disappointed in her.

"You shouldn't say that about Misty. She's a good person."

"Oh so that's why she did this to me!"

Brock just looked away. He was actually surprised Misty had left. He never knew her to be that sensitive. But it did involve Ash's love so it made sense. Misty had always been sensitive about her feelings for Ash. Every time someone would ask if he had a girlfriend she would start to get jealous, and would usually blow up at the person if they asked if she and Ash were together. She didn't want to admit that she liked Ash, but neither did she want to be thought of Ash's girlfriend. It somehow ruined her 'look.'

Love always works in weird ways, whether they might be good or bad. Along with Love, Fate joined in. Together, they formed the perfect duo. Love rests upon Fate and vice versa. It wasn't just coincidence that Misty was the one who pulled 10 year old Ash from the river when he was just setting out on his journey.

"Listen May," Brock started, "Ash is going to be really upset when he comes back if Misty actually left this time. So please just be kind and try not to butt in."

"Fine," answered May irritated, "But I don't see why Misty is so important to Ash." She crossed her arms and pouted.

"And I thought you saying 'Amber' to Torchich was bad…" mumbled Brock.

"What?"

"Nothing," said Brock as he rolled his eyes, "Just don't say or mention anything about Misty. Ash just needs to recover a little bit."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah…" replied May, "I'm going to go and clean up a bit more. My eye still hurts I might put some ice on it."

May went to her room muttering more curses. She washed herself off, tended to her injuries, and tried to put as much cover-up as possible over her eye, but it was so swollen it didn't look any better. Disappointed, May went to the freezer, got an ice-pack, laid down on the couch, and put the ice over her eye.

Stupid Misty...now I can't even watch T.V.

Brock was making lunch. Ash had been gone for about one hour. Pikachu and Max were still out and about town enjoying themselves. Misty was gone...

Brock never liked losing a friend, especially one who was so close and meaningful to him. He had always liked Misty, and although he never showed it, he loved her. But more so in a way like a brother would a sister. Though he always knew, and accepted the fact that Misty preferred Ash and loved him. He was happy for the two but just wished one time or another that they would just be able to listen to each other and tell how they felt. Every time Ash and Misty were alone together, it always ended in disaster. Somehow when one would try to say how they felt, the other would misinterpret it. It was going to take a long time before they could really become a couple.

Ash was only a few miles away from the hotel when he saw Max and Pikachu exiting an ice cream parlor. He decided to walk with them but not talk... now was not the time.

"Ash! Hey!" called Max, trying not to drip any ice cream, "We were just heading back to the hotel, where were you?"

"Pika..." Pikachu was tugging at Max's shorts trying to tell him to just not talk. Pikachu was acting like Togetic for some reason or another. Max then noticed Togetic's absence. Misty must have left…

"I was just...out for a walk," answered Ash, interrupting Max's thoughts.

"Oh... well let's go back to the hotel. I can smell Brock's lunch from here!"

The three walked back to the hotel. When they entered the room the aroma of stew greeted their noses.

"Mmmmmm..."

"Piiiiiiiii kaaa!"

Only Ash stayed silent. He looked as pale and white as a ghost. His eyes were red as if he was crying, and looked very, very heartbroken.

"Are you hungry Ash? We've got plenty of food."

"No...I'm fine." His voice had no emotion in it at all. It was if it was dead.

"Suit yourself," Brock said as he set the stew on the table. "Lunch is on!"

Everyone, aside from Ash, sat down at the table and ate their stew. The Pokemon were let out of their balls and fed too. It was a very unnerving lunch. Ash was silent, Max and May just ate, and Brock was the only one who tried to get a conversation to start. But it had failed.

Irritated and disappointed, Brock scolded the group. "Okay, stop acting like this. All of you! I'm so tired of all of you moping around! Yes, so someone is gone. I don't like it either, but I'm dealing with it. You... you guys are just being so… stupid isn't the right word, but I don't like how you're going about this. What's done is done. She has her own life now and you have yours, so live them."

"What would you know?" Ash had spoken. He looked up and glared into Brock's eyes. He knew he was trying to help but no one, not anyone could experience what he had throughout his life.

"Don't even start that Ash, I know as much as you. We don't need this now."

"Whatever..." Ash was too depressed to start a fight anyways. He was going to actually give Misty the necklace but, again, something went wrong and he ended up throwing it at her feet. He didn't understand it. Where had he gone wrong? The next thing he knew was he was walking away saying his last good-bye to Misty. His last good-bye...

May now had her chance. Misty was gone. Ash would be alone... and May would be there. She knew Ash would still be hurting from the 'break-up', but she would be there to speed the process up. Then he would be hers.

Tonight would be the night.

Wait a minute May... you don't want to do this to him when he's sad. It'll get you nowhere. Show him a good time, get his mind off of her.

May thought hard about things that would help take his mind off today. She happened to glance over a picture of a Ferris Wheel hanging on the wall besides a window.

Hey, isn't there a fair tonight? That would be perfect! I could show him it's ok to forget. Besides, it's better to have loved and lost then have loved at all, right?

She decided to ask Brock if that was a good idea. He would know. He always knew.

"Brock, can I talk to you?"

Brock muted the TV. "Sure May. What's up?"

"Well you know about that fair thing tonight right?"

"Yeeeah...what about it?"

"Well, I was thinking that, umm, maybe I could take Ash to the fair. You know... to clear his minds... loosen him up a bit."

"That's a great idea May!"

"Well I was just thinking and I was like 'Hey! That might do Ash some good!'"

Brock laughed, "Well we can all go. I'm sure there's a lot to do there. It's supposed to be one of the biggest fairs around."

"Okay. But do you know what time it is?"

"Yep, got the brochures right here. Let's see..." He started to flip through the little brochure. "Aha! Here it is. It says it starts at 5:30 PM and ends at 12 AM. We're all old enough to stay out that long. So we'll have tons to do."

May giggled. This was going to be perfect. She had it all planned out. She and Ash would be alone for the night. Ash was hers.

May glanced at the clock. It was 4 o'clock. Another hour and a half... Well it does take me a while to get ready… Might as well start.

May went to her closet and looked through her clothes. She had to wear something appealing, but cute at the same time. She finally picked her outfit. It was a red shirt like the one she usually wore and instead of black biker shorts, she wore a black mini-skirt. Her usual bandana was gone and replaced with a butterfly clip. She put make-up on and spritzed perfume on herself. She was ready. May stepped over to the mirror and was very pleased.

This should do it.

She was set. It was now 5 o'clock. It had taken a whole hour for her to get ready. But there was still 30 minutes left to kill. She decided to stay in her room so no one would see her. May wanted to surprise everyone. The girl lied down on her bed and pulled out a book. It was a romance novel. She would pretend the characters in the book were she and Ash. It was her way of seeing what it was like to be with Ash, even though the books weren't true.

Brock was ready, wearing his regular old clothes, Max was ready, he just put on a sweater, and Ash...well, they hadn't even told him about it yet. It was 5 o' clock.

Better get Ash... Brock went up to their door and knocked. "Ash, you in there?"

"No."

"Very funny Ash. Come on, open up."

"Why?"

"Because, I want to ask you something."

"I can hear you perfectly from here, ask away."

"Ash, don't be smart. Just open the door."

"No!"

"Fine, I guess I'll just break it down." With that he took a running start at the door. He was about to break it down when it opened. The momentum carrying him, he ran straight into the room and ran into a wall.

"Talk."

Brock shook himself off, almost smiling. Almost… "You can be such an ass you know that?" He rubbed his forehead.

"Yeah, I know..." answered Ash, closing the door.

"Well, now that I can ask you...do you want to come to the fair with us?"

"Not really."

"Come on Ash. It'll take your mind off things. Just have some fun that's all. It's only 'til 12."

"I'll think about it."

"Ash we have 30 minutes."

"Okay...I'll go. But if I don't want to stay you can't keep me there."

"Fine by me. You do what you want to do."

"Then why am I going again?"

Brock smiled. "Shut up Ash..."

Ash got ready. He wore his regular clothing and made sure his Pokeballs were in place just in case some moron wanted to take him on. Ash tried to think about how fun the fair would be. He remembered the last time he was at a carnival. With Brock and...-her-. He tried not to think about it. Brock did make a point. It would help clear his minds. Maybe he would go. Just not enjoy it.

It was 5:30. Time to go! The party departed from the hotel and made their way to fair. It was amazing! There was a Ferris wheel that could be seen from 2 miles away (its huge!). It was decorated with different colored lights all shining. Laughter and screams of other people there already echoed throughout the city. A roller coaster's silhouette could be seen in the distance. The gang bought their tickets and entered the park. Games were left and right of them along with food stands. It was huge! This was going to be a fun night.

Brock wanted to do his own thing and scope out some girls. Maybe this would be his lucky night. "I'm going to go walk around and just check out gir- I mean things."

"Well I really don't care what I do." Everyone turned to May. They were stunned! They didn't really notice May on the way over here but now...now...she looked amazing! "But I'd like to walk around. But I don't want to be alone."

"Why don't you go with her Ash?" suggested Brock.

"Okay... but what about Pikachu?"

"I can handle that!" Max butted in. "We can go do some games!"

Ash smiled, "Great." So much for my excuse…

"Then it's set! Max and Pikachu will go and do games, I'll just browse, and Ash and May will go and do whatever. We'll meet back here at 12 and then go back."

"Bye!" called Brock

"Later," waved Max.

"Pii!"

"See ya!" said May, walking alongside of Ash.

"Yeah, bye."

They all went their separate ways. Brock to scope out chicks, Max and Pikachu to play various games, and May and Ash had the fair to themselves.

"So, Ash what do you want to do first?" asked May.

"It's up to you. I don't really care," answered Ash apathetically.

"Oh, okay. Do you want to go on the rollercoaster?"

"Sure. Why not..."

The two teens got in line for the coaster, waited, and then rode it. Ash had to admit that is was pretty fun. But it wasn't the same. It never would be.

As they stood in line, Ash thought to himself about the girl. But it wasn't May he thought of…

Lighten up, Ash. She wanted you to be happy right? He sighed and looked up into the sky. Yeah but, I'm not happy without her.

He continued to fight with himself. Stop it Ash, she wanted you to be happy, so be happy. At least there's still someone who cares and would love to be with you.

Ash couldn't believe that he was thinking of May, but it was somewhat understandable. He needed someone to take his mind off Misty. And May had shown interest, he had been too unkind to return the favor. But he still doubted his sanity over the thought…

"So what do you want to do now?" interrupted May as they walked off the coaster.

"Let's go and play some games," suggested Ash.

"Okay! That sounds fun."

Ash and May played various games and won most of them. They were about to head to another section when...

"Oh! Ash will you win that for me? Please!" May was pointing at a giant stuffed tiger.

"Sure May," said Ash. "Hey, what are the rules?"

"Try and get the indicator to the top. Use the mallet and just hammer the trigger. If it hits the top you win."

"Sounds easy enough."

The manager of the game laughed, "Good luck kid..." he said smugly.

Ash lifted the mallet. It was pretty heavy but he could manage. After all the traveling and training he had gone through with his Pokemon, he had gotten very strong even though he didn't look it. Ash raised it over his head and brought it down on the trigger. The metal ball shot up the shoot and rang the bell.

"Ash you did it!"

"What!? How the hell did you do that!?"

"I don't know… strength?" replied Ash.

"Oh! Ash!!!! I want the tiger! Please!"

"The tiger please."

"Thank you Ash!" May leaned over and gave Ash a kiss on the cheek; it had taken her all of her courage.

"Uh- umm," stuttered Ash, "You're w-welcome." What the hell? Am I blushing?! Oh God…

"Come on let's go on the Ferris wheel."

"A-Alright."

"I've really enjoyed tonight Ash. It was fun!" May was smiling as they ran towards the Ferris wheel.

"Uh yeah. It was." She is nice. And since she is gone, I don't have anyone else I can really relate too. And May has been there, she might be just as good if not better…

They got on the Ferris wheel and started going up. The view was fantastic. Twinkling stars dotted the deep blue sky. The moon was big and bright. The air was nice and warm with a breeze blowing. It was perfect. They could see the mountains and other cities in the distance. The moment was perfect.

"A-Ash..." started May nervously.

"Yeah May."

"Umm I really did mean what I said...about enjoying tonight." It feels so… nice to be next to him.

"I know you did May." She does look pretty tonight…

"This is really nice up here...so beautiful."

Ash sighed. Might as well try it. "Not as b-beautiful a-as y-you..."

May turned and looked deep into Ash's eyes. Golden brown met sea green. Everything went silent around the two teens. The only sound that was heard was their beating hearts and heavy breathing. Ash leaned towards May's face.

Just do it… you'll be fine.

Yes! I did it! Ash is mine!

Their lips locked. The world was shut out. The only ones who existed were Ash and May. The kiss lasted a whole minute. They broke away and blushed furiously.

May snuggled towards Ash and laid her head on his shoulders. Ash put his arm around her waist and held her close.

Ash does care.

May won't break your heart, Ash.

The two sat like that until the ride was over. The perfect moment was fading but it would never be forgotten.

In the other section of the park, someone who had been reported five times already for harassment saw two young teens kiss on the Ferris wheel.

'Great!' thought Brock, 'Now I'm the only one without a girl.' "Excuse me miss!"

The 17 year old chased after various women throughout the night, a small electric mouse and an 11 year old were getting tired, and two 14 year olds were walking back to the entrance... holding hands.

The fair was over and the group was back in their suite. Brock went to his room to dream about how close he was this time with the ladies. Max took the couch as usual and fell asleep as soon as he hit the couch. Pikachu went with Brock to the room and was happily slurping on a bottle of ketchup. The only two remaining were May and Ash.

"Good night May."

"Night, Ash."

Ash looked around to make sure no one was watching. He quickly gave May a quick goodnight kiss on the cheek and went to his room.

She's pretty, kind… she's so… Ash stopped his thoughts. So much like her… He shook his head, angry at himself. No. She's different…As hard as Ash tried, he couldn't fight off that small measure of doubt within his mind.

Ash laid down on his bed and went to sleep. The next morning he would pursue May. She loved him and he was beginning to love her. Everything would work out for him for once. Maybe Fate and Love chose a different path for our hero Ash.

The walk home for Misty and Togetic was silent. Misty was still thinking about the beautiful necklace Ash had gotten her. She didn't understand why Ash couldn't admit his feelings. But then... wasn't she the same? She had many chances to tell how she loved Ash. This time was different. She had to admit it. Just so he would know.

Now they would be separated for eternity. It was probably better this way. Her pain would heal eventually. But no matter how much time was allowed, there would always be a scar.

Smile Hope that little twist was somewhat enjoyable. But don't hate me, I have plans for May. Don't worry. Let me know what you think!

Night Mare579