Disclaimer: The pokemon series and characters, besides Mizuki and Aya, all belong to its original creators. I claim no possession of Misty, or any pokemon used.

Author's Note: Hey everyone! I know it's been a while since I've posted something, but basically, this is the new chapter! How will she fare against Misty and her water types? It's a water vs water battle! Wanna find out who wins? Only one way to find out… :3

Chapter 3: The Tides of Ingenuity

And so were we on our way to Cerulean City. That was my home town, you know? Lots and lots of people from Cerulean appreciated water types just like me, and the famous leader of the Cerulean gym, Misty. I couldn't wait to stop back home and prepare myself for the upcoming match. No doubt that Misty would love a visit before the match and by the time we would hit Cerulean it would be about dinnertime….

As we walked, the small amounts of rubble beneath our feet made scratching-sloshing sounds, showing the apparent and slight fatigue we both had under the sun shining over our heads. Aya then turned to me, the conversation had completely died, till she asked.

"So you're from Cerulean, Mizu?"

"Mhm. Sure am." I replied casually. She seemed to really want to get a better sense of what kind of trainer I was, since, she didn't get to view my match with Brock. She smirked.

"Hm interesting. You did give off a certain kind of vibe when I first spotted you. I was willing to bet you were a water type trainer but I wasn't too sure. But if you're from Cerulean, that pretty much confirms my guess." She giggled and I smiled.

"Well you're right, Aya. I'm indeed a water pokemon trainer. Someday, I want to be the best. And the first step to that is my immediate dream of being a gym leader. And that's the test I'm on right now. I have to beat all the gym leaders again and learn some kind of lesson, that will contribute to my experience and knowledge of being a gym leader. And if I can beat them all, I probably will be certified as a gym leader." I explained.

"Wow, that's amazing. And how old are you? Because, you're still kinda young. So I'm just amazed that things are happening so fast. Then again, I have no desire to be one of the best pokemon trainers or anything. I view Pokemon as a form of protection, yes. But, I do view them also as a thing of beauty. Even if I don't like one type as much as the other, I'll still find some form of beauty within them. So I like to enter into contests and such and try to win them. I take good care of my pokemon and only feed them the healthiest food." She smiled and I listened intently, she was quite the interesting person. I waited for her to go on as she looked like she had more to say. "But don't get me wrong, I like to get down and dirty and battle sometimes too. After all that's what makes them the strongest possible they can be and it helps me choose which two of the species to breed together." She smiled. So wait, she was a pokemon trainer, contest contender, and breeder alike?

"Well gee, then you must know a lot about what is good for pokemon of all kinds and types. It's nice to know someone who knows how to caretake to the pokemon in ways that even the poke-centers don't have an idea of." I smiled.

"Oh please Mizuki, you're going to make me blush. You're too kind. But, yes, I do say having me along the trip might help you some, and I'll always be there to support your pokemon. After all, that's what friends are for right? But, you're pretty remarkable yourself." She smiled and relayed a compliment to me, to which I appropriately thanked her. And suddenly, the road to Cerulean City didn't seem as plain.

About an hour later…

"We're finally here!" I cried out as I spotted the entrance to my hometown. It was a small archway that read "Cerulean City" atop it. And then there was a sign that read: "Welcome to Cerulean City. Home of the Heart of the Ocean." I smiled; Not a thing had changed since I last left and it was nice to see everything in one piece still. The sky was a downcast orange with a bit of pink on its horizon. The clouds were turning a grayish-blue color as the little bit of sunlight was setting on the day. I checked my watch.

"Dinnertime!" I cried out and ran into town. The distracted Aya who was still looking at the wonders of this town, then realized me running off and snapped back to reality. She chased after me, trying to not be left behind at the entrance.

Eventually she found me within the city and talking to some of my friends, but my main focus was a girl standing amongst the people with orange hair. I pushed my way through and hugged her, or the part of her I could reach. Granted that she wasn't that tall either, but she was definitely taller than me, as she was older. I would have guessed her to be around Aya's height. Who was this mysterious woman you ask? Well…

"MISTY!" I cried out and hugged her tightly. She seemed a bit surprised at the sudden contact to her body, but more surprised to see me all excited and happy from what seemed like nowhere. She immediately turned to me to return the hug and to remark back …

"Mizuki. Oh, it's been a while since I've seen you last. How's my favorite little trainer?" Misty giggled and ruffled the hairs atop my head. Truthfully, I looked up to her like an older sister. And secretly, I wished she'd been my sister to begin with; It'd be a hell of a lot better than having the brother that I do now.

"Misty, I'm back in town to ask for another gym challenge. The professor wants to see if I am capable of gym leader status and to go around beating the trainers in the order I first beat them is my test. So prepare to battle!" I jumped off of her and excitedly pointed in a "cool" way, ready for it right this second. My idol, Misty, approached me and placed one of her hands atop my head gently.

"Fine, I accept your challenge. But, how about we get some dinner first okay? I'm kinda hungry, and I bet you are too." Then Misty's teal eyes caught sight of my friend standing behind me, awkwardly, in the background, watching this lovable scene happen right in front of her. Struck with a look of curiosity, Misty approached her and stuck her hand out to her for a shake. There was a friendly smile on her face and a kind aura about her. "Hi, what's your name? I'm…"

"Aya. My name is Aya, and it's a pleasure to meet you, Misty." Aya smiled kindly and took her hand to shake it. And though it was meant to be a light, very formal touch, Aya's strength once more got the better of her and nearly crushed Misty's hand. And in accordance with the pain, Misty tried to take it and hide it.

"Well it's nice to meet you, Aya. I take it you're a friend of little Mizuki here then." Misty smiled and let her hand fall to her side, where it originally was.

"Yes, we actually met when she was on her way to Pewter City. I'm from there, but I needed to go and do something in another town as of recent. When I returned, she was on her way out and I decided to join her. She told me she was from here, Cerulean City. And then I thought she must know you. But, I can honestly say, it's quite the honor."

"Oh, well that's the Mizuki I know. She always did love to visit me and watch the battles against me, I guess she learned from them. Many people say she's just like a mini me, but I don't see it. Mizu is her own unique person with a specific personality. Sure, she and I may be alike, but in the end, we're too different to compare." Misty giggled.

"Um, Misty, if you don't mind, could I watch your match? I would love to see the way you two face off. Mizuki, I know is like a little ball of energy, and you… you're the Cerulean City gym leader." Aya seemed to be having a friendly conversation with Misty. Meanwhile, I was playing with some of my pokemon, waiting for Misty to come and get dinner with me.

"Sure, I wouldn't have a problem with that." She replied and now was my time to interject.

"Hey! I'm starving, let's go get something to eat Misty! And then we're battling!" Misty shook her head in amusement and started to walk with me to the nearest ramen place we knew of, Aya following suit. Tonight was going to be one spectacular night. I could tell.

About an hour later…

"Alright Misty! Are you ready to battle?" I cried out determined to win this against her. I knew that she was going to go all out and show me her true potential just as Brock did. Things were changing, becoming harder, but I knew that I'd be overcome it if I really did try my best. Misty smirked and stood on the floating platform in the water across from me directly. This gym set was all too familiar to my eyes.

"Yeah, how does 2 pokemon a piece sound?" She asked.

"It sounds fine with me." I called back. Aya sat in the stands, entranced with the gym set and all that was happening right now. It seemed the atmosphere was just an amazing rushing feeling that one couldn't get enough of and that, might aid to my advantage in battle.

"Alright then let's get this show on the road! Misty calls Horsea!" The pokemon popped out of the pokeball in an almost blinding light, before fading and placing itself in the water. It cried its name cutely and waited for my pokemon to appear. I looked at it, analyzing it slightly.

"Horsea? So even after all this time, your Horsea still hasn't evolved? It's alright, it's cute. After the battle, and your healing, how does a play-date sound Horsea?" Horsea nodded in my direction, showing its approval of my suggestion. What was wise was to make friends with pokemon and show them all kindness. What was better, Misty was a close personal friend of mine, as well as an inspiration, her pokemon only added to the amplified image in my head. And her pokemon, I got to see every time I came to visit her here at the gym. Horsea, was one of those pokemon that I got along with well. "Well alright then. Let's go, Poliwhirl!" The pokemon materialized out of the pokeball and struck a fighting pose. The friendly expression on Misty's face grew.

"A Poliwhirl. I'm guessing you caught this little guy while you were out on your travels." She giggled and Mizuki nodded.

"Yeah, interesting story actually. See, I was fishing down by the ponds over by the woods near Celadon, and he was just down the way fishing for food. He looked tired, like he just trained or something. So I caught some fish and offered him mine, he didn't look like he was having any luck. He thanked me and I was on my way. Not long after did I discover the little guy had been following me. He wanted to be to my pokemon." I smiled, remembering the story. It was just so awesome.

"Well that was very nice of you. I would have done the same thing. What do you say we get this battle underway?"

"Sounds good to me! Poliwhirl start this off with a double slap attack!" Poliwhirl moved swiftly and did as told, attempting to hit the small formed Horsea in the water.

"Horsea! Use sludge bomb!" Horsea quickly spewed a dark cloud of messiness from its opening for a mouth at the approaching Poliwhirl. The sludge bomb hit and Poliwhirl, instantly stopped attacking, falling to one of the floating ice platforms, trying to clear the substance out of his eyes. He seemed to be sporadically moving, and that is when Misty gave another command.

"Horsea, continue with a tackle attack!"

"Quick Poliwhirl! Jump in the water to dodge the attack and to wash that icky stuff off your face!" Poliwhirl did just that in time, avoiding the tackle by Horsea. Horsea slowed down its momentum. Horsea now had a confused expression, confused about the location of my Poliwhirl. Now we had the upper advantage. I giggled in a small bit of confidence.

"Alright, Poliwhirl, jump out of the water and use Hydro Pump!" Poliwhirl took a minute to do so, lingering beneath the surface of the waters of the gym for just a little longer. He wanted to catch Horsea off guard and attack at just the right moment. Unexpectedly, Poliwhirl then jumped out of the water and quickly fired a hydro pump right at Horsea. Misty tried to command her Horsea to evade the attack, but I had hoped it was successful.

"Horsea! Try to evade it!" Horsea tried and looked around, trying to find some way to dodge the attack hurling right at it. But, it was to no avail. There was nowhere little Horsea could go and thus the attack hit. Horsea was spewed backwards a little bit, but got right back up to fight. Misty celebrated.

"Woo hoo! That's my Horsea! Always strong!" She exclaimed and did her signature pose which entailed her placing a peace sign in the air with one hand, her index and middle fingers, the ones raised. One of her eyes was winked as well. I sighed.

"Alright Poliwhirl, this is gonna be a tough battle. But we can do it. We just have to put our minds to it. Hang in there buddy!" He nodded and panted, obviously a bit tired from firing such a great amount of water at a higher speed than normal. Horsea seemed to be recovering as well.

"Okay Horsea! Way to go so far! Let's keep it going. Attack with Toxic attack. Don't stop firing until you hit him!" Horsea nodded and continued to fire the small blasts of poison at Poliwhirl. Poliwhirl, obviously, did everything he could to dodge them. And for a while, it was a game of cat and mouse, having Poliwhirl run and dodge, and Horsea chase and fire. And though this had just started, Horsea couldn't catch Poliwhirl in its toxic attack. There was a trick to this as I was beginning to realize! The more that Horsea began to fire its toxic attacks, the more its mouth was starting to become fatigued and its attacks would be slower. I could tell that Poliwhirl was getting a little tired of dodging all this time too, but he showed no signs of giving up. I smiled, taking pride in my pokemon's determination.

"That's it Poliwhirl! Keep it up buddy, you're doing great!" I shouted at him. He smiled and looked back at me momentarily, seeing that I was happy. That's all he ever desired. But, Misty's Horsea continued to fire, and that's when the tables turned on me. As soon as Poliwhirl had looked back at me, he went to step on one of the floating platforms of ice, and lost his footing, slipping and falling. Well, folks, you can guess what happened next as the toxic attack came flying at Poliwhirl. It hit, now he was poisoned. I sighed and she smiled. Horsea ceased fire.

"Yesss! Way to shoot Horsea!"

"Oh no Poliwhirl. Well, we'll keep fighting till you can. Just try your best, okay?" Poliwhirl managed to nod and stand up, cringing from the poison infecting him. He was ready to fight again and it was then that I softly smiled, once more, taking pride in the resilience of my pokemon.

"You're doing your best Poliwhirl, that's very admirable. I'll be sure to give you an antidote after the battle is through." Misty smiled. Poliwhirl did as well, thankful to have such kind and devoted trainers surrounding him. I smiled.

"Alright, so long as you're okay to battle Poliwhirl. Come on buddy, let's do an ice beam. Aim for its weak spot!" I called out and Poliwhirl nodded, summoning the strength that was quickly leaving him, and putting it all into the ice beam. He fired it at Horsea, and after that moment, collapsed, and tired. The ice beam, luckily, hit Horsea but didn't freeze it, or do anything to it. It didn't even touch its weak spot. Poliwhirl had fainted on the sheet of floating ice in the water, completely worn. I sighed and called him back to his pokeball.

"You did well Poliwhirl, now rest."

Meanwhile, Aya sat in the stands, almost chewing her nails off. She was on edge about this. It was rather intense and somehow, she'd never seen a battle like it. She was really enticed, and found herself wondering what pokemon I was going to choose next. I smirked, but in a good way.

"Heh."

"Why the smirk, Mizuki? Got something up your sleeve?" She smiled.

"Something like that." I placed back Poliwhirl's pokeball and grabbed another one off my belt, inflating it to fit my hand's size. I took a moment to breathe, this pokemon was special. "Let's go Starmie!" I threw the pokeball and Starmie materialized out of it. He gave a healthy cry and took a valiant stance. Horsea readied itself for battle again.

"Ah, a Starmie. I remember, you always did used to treasure him. He was special to you." She smiled sincerely. "I know that feeling, when a pokemon is so special to you. I'm just honored that you saved him for this battle with me. Our battles always were the most fun when we used our favorites." She let out another giggle. She did seem genuinely happy to be battling with me.

"Well, yeah, that's true. But I have to warn ya Misty, Starmie and I have improved. We have a special connection and a few tricks up our sleeves." I chuckled and got ready for battle. She gave me a look almost resembling: 'Show me'. I pointed my finger forward. "We're gonna start this off with a tackle attack!" Starmie started to dart back and forth, spinning and trying his best to hit the Horsea. Horsea was just trying to dodge the flying star and eventually, his evasion didn't help him as he was struck by Starmie's attack. Horsea was growing more tired now, I could see it. "Alright Starmie, continue this with a bubblebeam attack!"

"Horsea dodge it!" Misty commanded. And as Horsea went to dodge it, it stopped almost completely. It was tired from battling against my first pokemon and needed a rest, unable to really compete with the new standard Starmie was setting. Fatigued, he stayed where he was, and the bubblebeam attack blasted Horsea. Horsea was pushed back a bit and that's when Misty scooped up her fainted pokemon in her arms, cuddling it. She called it back to its pokeball and spoke to it softly. "Great job Horsea, you did well. Now it's time for a good long rest." Misty placed her pokeball back in her bag, reaching for another one and pulling the appropriate ball out, inflating it in her hands.

"Alright, well, normally, I'd go the safer route, but today I'm feeling lucky. Alright let's do this Tentacruel!" Tentacruel materialized from his pokeball and loomed down at me. He wasn't as big as the pokedex made him out to be, but still he instilled fear into me by his eerie stare. I shivered once.

"Alright Starmie, you can take him. Size means nothing! We just have to stayed focused!"

"Alright Tentacruel, let's start this off with a water gun attack! Hit her Starmie right in the gemstone!" Tentacruel started to fire off blasts of water in an attempt to hit Starmie. I called out quickly to Starmie.

"Starmie dodge it!" Starmie, moving swiftly, was able to dodge most of the water blasts coming from Tentacruel, but, some got the best of him and hit him, thankfully, it was not in the jewel in his center. I called out once more, "Starmie! Are you okay?" Starmie shook the water residue off of him and stood tall and proud once more. He cried healthily, ready for another round. I thought to myself…

'Okay, all I need to do is beat this pokemon and I win against the Cerulean City gym. I just need to stay calm and focused. Tentacruel is a water and poison type pokemon, and so, I have to be careful, because at any moment, she could unleash a poison attack on me and then both my pokemon would be poisoned. Misty's hard to read. But, so far, she just seems to be attacking me with water attacks with this one. I wonder why… is she trying to use the environment to her advantage. I see, she probably has some trick up her sleeve to use once Starmie is tired. I'll have to watch out. Okay here we go Mizuki!'

"Starmie! We're gonna have to go in for a psychic attack!" Starmie did so and the Tentacruel felt the impact. "YES!" I cried out. Misty only smiled to herself.

"Tentacruel, use ice beam and freeze the field over, close in as much as you can whilst still leaving yourself room." And within minutes, the entire field was covered with ice. I wondered what she was doing, could this be the trick?

"Whoa, Misty, what'd you freeze the field for?" I blinked in confusion. Starmie, who had jumped in the air for that psychic attack, tried to land back down on the plated ice that once was the water and found himself having a hard time standing on it. He was slipping everywhere, despite being an able bodied water type pokemon. "Oh no! Starmie!" I cried out. "So that was your plan. Freeze over the field, making it harder for me to operate with Starmie. If Starmie can't stand, the only other option he has is to be flying through the air in a tackle attack. Not only will that become tiring to Starmie, but he can't attack otherwise while using tackle. You're quite the intelligent one, Misty."

"Thanks, you're pretty intelligent yourself for figuring my plan out." I smiled, a compliment from my idol. YAY.

"Well, alright then. We're just gonna have to work through this, since Starmie isn't a fire type, we can't melt the ice. Starmie, you ready for this buddy?!" He cried healthily. He knew just what we were doing. I closed my eyes and he tried his best to stabilize himself on the ice and hone in on relaxing, using a bit of a psychic wave. I kept my eyes closed. But, something Misty would have started to notice; My necklace, the cascade badge, was glowing faintly.

"Whoa, Mizuki. This is certainly a new trick. What is it you're doing?" She smiled and wanted to know. I opened my eyes and they were glowing a white color, Starmie didn't move, only his gem began to glow slightly. "Allow me to explain." I had an undertone to my voice, the link always did that. "Starmie is a water type pokemon. But, he's also psychic. Psychic can be used in many ways, I've found one of those alternate ways. Instead of using it to attack you, I have developed a way to link myself to Starmie, thus we are connected. I don't need to verbally command him to attack, I can think the command and he'll carry it out as wished. But, on the downside, if you hit him, it damages me too. That is the only drawback of this link. Starmie is one of the closest pokemon to me, I trust him with many things, perhaps it's safe even to say my life. And he's proven himself a great pokemon. We are now connected, as pokemon and trainer should be. So Misty, let us continue the battle." Her eyes went wide with apparent shock and some disbelief. Then a moment later, she crossed her arms and giggled, laughing to herself in pride and yet amazement both.

"You truly are going to be an amazing pokemon trainer when you get older. I would have never even dreamed of doing that with my Starmie, so it's amazing you've developed this with yours. Make sure you always take good care of that Starmie, Mizuki. And yourself too. Your brain would be a terrible thing to waste, I mean just look what you've come up with." She smiled. "I'm so proud of you. So let's wrap this battle up, and then we can catch up some." I nodded to her, hearing every word. Misty was truly a kind person.

"Alright Tentacruel, let's kick it up a notch. Go! Use toxic!" She cried out and I smiled, commanding Starmie to dodge it and jump into the air, psychically. He did just that and jumped, and before, Tentacruel could find the poison enough to fire another toxic blast, I commanded Starmie to use thunderbolt on Tentacruel whilst still in the air. He conjured an electric current and then threw it at Tentacruel. Misty's eyes widened with shock.

"What the- Tentacruel!" She called out from sheer shock. The call of his name made the pokemon cease firing the toxic attacks, wondering what his trainer was going to command him to do. Starmie's thunder attack reached Tentacruel and shocked him. It was powerful and to my luck, super effective. Tentacruel's large body thrashed about as it was electrocuted, breaking the ice that plated the waters of the field, letting the water flow again. The water only conducted the electric current, shocking the pokemon more, and driving him to his ultimate exhaustion. Tentacruel, within the next minutes that shock ended, had fainted. Starmie landed in the water, safe now that the electric had finished. And within another minute or so, I opened my eyes and began to separate my link from Starmie. I panted, feeling the amount of energy exhaustion on myself as Starmie had on him at the moment. The cascade badge around my neck stopped glowing as did the gem in the center of Starmie''s form. He was obviously tired, but still standing, and with that, Misty called back her final pokemon. That match was decided and won in my favor! I smiled in overwhelming joy, finding such happiness in the victory I'd just accomplished!

"Return Tentacruel. Well, well, Mizuki, you've beaten me again. Nice work. You're an excellent trainer. And you have once more proved that to me through battle. Even when I pulled out some of the stops I haven't used in years, you still managed to work your way around it and use the field to your advantage, that's the power of ingenuity, and it's the lesson I teach here at my gym. You have now learned that, while type effectiveness may be a smart choice, you need to pay attention to your surroundings as well and use them to them your advantage, or perhaps in this case, do both and overcome a present obstacle that stands in your way and continue to battle your hardest. A truly great trainer doesn't let anything stand in their way, and that's how I see you Mizuki. A truly great trainer who doesn't intend to let anything stand in her way. So I'm proud to present you with…" And she dug around in her bag for something. Meanwhile, in the background, Aya was celebrating with such happiness, she couldn't contain it. She was dancing and singing and having a great time, while the legendary exchange between "mentor" and "student" was taking place.

I looked up into her teal eyes with pride, and she looked down into my turquoise with much pride as well. Both of us, experiencing joy in this moment.

"I'm proud to present you with this, Mizuki. It's a medal, wear it, store it, do whatever with it. But cherish it. You have officially cleared the Cerulean City gym." Misty draped the medal over my head and around my neck gently. The medal read "Cerulean City Gym" at the top of it and on it was the city's symbol, waves for water. I smiled as it glimmered under the lights in the gym. Another stop done! Woohoo!

A few hours later…

It was now a deeper, dark night and I remained sitting in the pokemon center, after just healing my pokemon. The moon's light shown down in through the window and onto my medal. I was up, admiring its beauty, along with the other one from Brock I'd obtained. I smiled as I looked at it. Aya turned over in the bed across the room from mine to look at me. She spoke softly.

"Still admiring that medal?"

"Yeah."

"You should, you deserve it. Beating Misty and even Brock, I have to hand it to you, Mizuki, They're tough and you managed to pull through. I think what Misty said is true."

"Hm?"

"You know, all that stuff about you being a truly good trainer and all. I think it's true, and regardless of who you have to face up ahead, I just know you'll find a way to beat all of them. You'll become a gym leader. I know I've only known you for a little bit and we've only just become friends, but from spending the time with you I have, I can tell… I just know, you're destined to do great things." Aya smiled and chuckled. I didn't honestly know how to reply to that, so I smiled, laughed and then turned to face her, placing the medal back down and out of my hands, letting it fall where it may.

"Well, thank you. That means a lot to me Aya. And even though I haven't really known you that long either, I can tell, we're gonna be good friends." She smiled.

"Yeah." There was a brief pause between our speech for a moment, and then she remarked something to me. "But…" She yawned and stretched. "I'm tired, I need some sleep. I think it would do you well to get some shut eye as well. Well, Mizu, goodnight." And with that, Aya turned over to face the wall and within minutes she was asleep. I turned over as well, and remained awake for a few more moments.

'So I'm gonna have to face Surge next, huh? He's an all electric type guy. That means that he's gonna be tough to beat. I mean, water conducts electricity. I just have to be smart and careful in my choices is all. But the journey there will probably be fun now that I have Aya around to travel with me. Yeah… I'm gonna be a gym leader.'

And with that my eyes closed, falling to the vices of sleep. When I woke up; It would be a goodbye and then I was off to Vermillion City. Surge…. my next opponent.

[THE END.]

Author's Note: So, pretty awesome right everyone? Okay, let me explain about the psychic thing. Mizuki herself isn't psychic like Sabrina is. She doesn't have any sort of powers to be able to control the pokemon at will. Instead, it's an equal bond between her and her pokemon that allows her to be able to command Starmie telepathically. And in turn, there is a drawback, if Starmie would have gotten hit, Mizuki would have felt it. It's not something that is normally done, I know, but I wanted to spice things up a bit, and that idea I had formed. I don't know, I thought it made it pretty exciting. And anyway, Mizuki's had Starmie since she was little. Anyways, stay tuned. Another chapter will be up eventually and next she'll be battling Lt. Surge of Vermillion City. How will her water types fare against his electric? It's sure to be one interesting battle! :D