_Recap_
Episode Title: Star Cross'd Lovers
Closest town/landmark: Cerulean City Gym
Distance travelled: 0km
Pokemon mentioned: Two
Pokemon discovered to have natural battling ability: One/Zero depending on what perspective you look at it from.
Never quite resolving what happened to Ash's 'suspiciously absent' shirt: Priceless
Ash: The Last Stand – All is Fair in Love and War
Although some things are sternly frowned upon . . .
Somehow news seemed to have spread that the Ash Ketchum would be battling the renown Cerulean gym leader for the cascade badge that day, and the seats of the battle arena were filled with interested trainers well before noon. Ash had somehow been dubbed a favourite for this years Indigo competition, and many were eager to see what had earned him such odds.
Misty was similarly eager to see how Ash would apply his skills, although she wouldn't say as much. The overwhelming emotions twirling inside her seemed to have very little to do with the upcoming battle right now, and so much to do with the boy himself that she was starting to wish she had never accepted his challenge.
"Misty?" Lily questioned, giving her sister a very curious look, "let me just start by saying that your hair looks totally cute, but what on earth are you doing?"
"I'm getting ready for my battle," Misty replied, frowning at her reflection as she fingered the orange curls that now framed her face and brushed her shoulders.
"Misty, you look so cute!" Violet cried. "I mean, like totally not as cute as us, but we could totally acknowledge you as our sister now. Although, not to sound like unappreciative or anything, but why are you looking so cute?"
"What?" Misty asked them moodily, glaring at her two sisters. "Is it suddenly a crime for me to take pride in my appearance?"
"No, it's just like so totally unusual," Lily replied. "What's the – like - occasion?"
"Real nice," she muttered, rolling her eyes at the twins. "I have a gym battle," she told them with a snarl. "I'm trying to look professional."
"In a skirt?" Lily asked, raising an eyebrow at the youngest Waterflower. "Isn't that the skirt we got you like two Christmas' ago?"
"Yes."
"And isn't that the top Daisy gave you when she found out it didn't fit her, that you said you wouldn't wear even if your life totally depended on it?" the strawberry-headed woman questioned.
"Your point?" Misty glared at her sister, daring her to question further.
"Misty, are you wearing heals?" Violet asked, her eyes widening in horror. Misty's eyes narrowed at the two.
"Daisy!" they cried in unison. "Daisy, come quick! Something's wrong with Misty!"
The oldest Waterflower raced into the room, ready to take charge of the situation and do whatever she could to help her baby sister. Like her two other sisters, she gaped at Misty's attire and couldn't help but comment.
"Baby sister, you look lovely," she said in awe taking in the whole ensemble, which consisted of a dark flounced pencil skirt, a starkly white bodice, with a ruffled edge blue half-jacket over top. "What's wrong?" she added sternly, somehow managing to drop the 'likes' from her sentence, and thus emphasising her point.
"Nothing's wrong," Misty replied moodily, glaring at her oldest sister. "In case you hadn't noticed, there happen to be a lot of people here today, and so I'm just trying to look that part. I thought you three of all people would understand something like that."
Daisy looked unperturbed by Misty's harsh look and tilted her head to the side smugly. "Of course something's wrong," she replied. "This has like nothing to do with them, and everything to do with whatever happened with you and like Ash yesterday."
"Nothing happened," she said through gritted teeth, ignoring her three sisters who rolled their eyes in unison. She growled loudly. "Will you please just drop it, ok? We're just friends, nothing more so please just forget about whatever you think happened and quit bugging me about my friend."
She gritted her teeth further as each of her sisters sent her a sympathetic look and a knowing glance. Finally, Daisy risked saying something, smiling gently at her sister as she spoke.
"Oh, come on, Misty," she disagreed. "You like never were a good liar, and even we can see that what you feel for Ash goes like totally beyond friendship. People do not stress out for almost a week trying to work out what to wear to see someone who is just a friend."
Lily and Violet nodded in agreement. "You didn't even put like that much effort into going out with Rudy," Lily added to reinforce Daisy's point, "And that was like an actual date."
"What?" Misty asked them incredulously, raising a stern eyebrow in their direction. "So I'm not allowed to look nice for my friends? Maybe I was dressing up for Mrs. K 'cause I wanted her to see what a lady I'd become. Ever think of that?"
"And what's your excuse now?" Violet countered with a sanctimonious smile that made Misty want to reach for the closest weapon.
"A person should look professional when engaging with a challenger," Misty replied haughtily, smiling tightly in her direction and wondering why she was having to repeat a point she had already made.
Daisy sighed at Misty's insistence and shook her head disbelievingly. She had to wonder sometimes where Misty had inherited such a strong stubborn streak – part of her suspected it was a mixture of Nana Rose and their father making the redhead almost impossible to argue with.
"Misty, in your like seventeen years of life, I have only seen you wear a dress or skirt on like three occasions," Daisy pointed out seriously. "And two of those were this month, coinciding with the presence of a certain totally cute dark-haired Pokémon Trainer."
Misty smiled tightly at her sister, her eyes narrowing dangerously. "I don't know what you're insinuating, Daisy," she replied, muttering her sisters name like it left a bad taste in her mouth. "But you'll do well to remember who bought you that thesaurus."
Silence filled the room after Misty's words, until the three older girls, as they embraced the youngest in a four-way hug, shared a unanimous cry of sympathy.
"Oh, baby sister," Daisy cooed softly, forcing her sister to meet her eye. "Nothing is ever going to happen if you keep like refusing to even admit your feelings like this. If you won't tell us how you feel, then like at least tell him."
Misty just nodded her head in defeat.
She wondered if they realized just was on the line this time. It was more than a gym battle. More than pride.
And she just knew it would break her heart.
Ash tried not to get nervous when he saw the huge turn out for his battle, although in truth it had nothing to do with the crowd and everything to do with his opponent. The crowds had never been a problem in his other battles, at least not since his first time at the Indigo Plateau.
But today was very different from the Indigo Plateau. Whenever he had battled before a crowd like this in the past, he had always been secure in the knowledge that somewhere Misty was there cheering him on, but today he wasn't so sure. He had no idea where she stood in relation to the battle specifically, and him generally.
She refused to see him at any point before their battle – that was the message her sisters had relayed to him when he tried to talk with her at 11:30 am. When he asked why, they shrugged him and gave him another of those sympathetic looks that just made him more concerned. It was not like the Waterfower sister's to be so considerate.
He looked at the large digital display located upon one of the sidewalls, counting down the seconds left until twelve. 'Trust Misty to make an entrance,' he thought to himself as he watched the last ten seconds tick away.
And when she finally arrived he knew she was worth the wait. Never before in his life had he felt the need to utter the word 'sensational', but that was what she was. She was beautiful, gorgeous, stunning, awe-inspiring and enchanting. In short, she was sensational in every sense of the word from her long legs to her tiny waist to creamy skin, brilliant eyes and flaming red hair. She was perfect.
"Cheater," he muttered resentfully to his prized Pokémon who was, as always, at his side as they watched Misty make her grand entrance. "How on earth does she expect me to beat her when she's looking like that?" he asked. "I can hardly think, let alone battle. That top must be against the rules," he proclaimed, gesturing to the low cut bodice that clung to her womanly figure and revealing a teasing hint of cleavage that made his mouth water ever so slightly.
"Pikachu," the Pokémon replied, rolling his eyes at his master. Sometimes he wondered how the boy ever managed to survive without him, but then he remembered that even when they were together the boy tended to almost kill himself, and so Pikachu began to wonder how on earth he managed to survive with Ash.
Given the crowd, Daisy had taken it upon herself to announce the battle, while Brock had kindly offered to take her place as referee.
"Today's like battle is a three-on-three battle between the challenger, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and the Cerulean City Gym leader, Misty Waterflower," Daisy explained cheerfully. "Neither may substitute. Ash's team consists of Bulbasaur, Gastly, and Pikachu, where as Misty shall be battling with Staryu, Politoed, and Seadra. The battle shall now – like – begin!"
Ash gave a quick determined nod to try and get him self into battle mode as he fingered the two Pokéballs on his belt. He really wished that he had his hat right now, as though that somehow would be enough to get his mind in the right place. Instead he was having great difficulty trying to focus on anything but Misty.
"Go Ga-"
"Time Out!" Misty cried, cutting off Ash's attempt to call out his first Pokémon. She jumped down from the slightly raised podium and gestured for him to follow him. "This way, Ketchum," she commanded blandly, barely sparing a glance in his direction.
The crowd gaped as the challenger and gym leader exited the arena, murmuring quietly with speculations, but none of them would have come even close the truth.
'Was this it?' they wondered collectively (bar a few individuals who were more optimistic than the group as a whole). Rumour had it that the gym leader had forced him to do all kinds of terrible acts before she accepted his challenge, so maybe she had more for him before she would see him in battle. It made them wonder what he could have done to offend the girl that would have him punished so severely.
Misty led Ash out of the battling grounds, taking his hand once they were out of view and dragging him to some secluded hallway. Once she was secure in their privacy, she pressed her lips desperately against his, running her free hand through his tangled raven locks as she savoured the feel of his lips. If Ash had known any better, he would have noted that she kissed like it was their last.
Ash immediately returned her action, his initial shock subsiding to the pleasure of her kiss. He untwined their hands so that he could wrap his arms around her, bringing her closer to him so that he could deepen their kiss. Every movement he made was a gesture to bring himself closer to her.
But reluctantly, Misty drew herself away, pulling back from his embrace. She didn't know what action she regretted more. The kiss was breaking her resolve, but ending it so abruptly was leaving her wanting. All she knew was she'd never be able to get the words out if she kept kissing him – if they kept that up she knew she would just end up choosing for him and she wasn't willing to do so no matter how much she enjoyed the alternative.
She felt Ash's arms tighten around her, and she knew he was eager to continue with their previous activities (she was equally eager but in possession of a degree of self control that Ash lacked). In order to halt what she considered an attempt to seduce her (and a pretty good one at that), she leaned forward and gently kissed his cheek. The look of confusion that sprung across his features told her that he had gotten her message – there was something more important that needed attending to first.
"Ash, I like you," she said plainly, meeting his gaze steadfastly. "And please don't say you like me too unless you mean it the way that I do," she added, cutting him off before he made the obligatory friendship response.
A sly grin formed on his face and he loosened his grip ever so slightly. "And exactly how do you mean it, Misty?" he asked, his smile broadening as she scowled at him and tried to cross her arms from within his embrace.
"Forget it," she scowled. "If you're going to be a jerk about it then I've changed my mind."
He smiled senselessly, planting a soft peck against her lips. "I like you too, Myst," he admitted sincerely.
"Well good," she replied stiffly. "I'm glad that we've established that we're on the same page here."
"Me too," he said, coupling his words with an attempt to lean forward and capture her lips. She halted his attempt by moving her index finger up against his lips in a gesture, which very clearly said 'thou shalt not pass'.
"Do you really think that I would suspend a gym battle so I could drag you off to some corner to make out?" she asked him sceptically. "What kind of gym leader do you think I am?"
"The kind that really, really likes me and wants to reward me for doing such a good job on the gyarados habitat?" She raised an eyebrow at him and resisted the urge to tell him he had 'missed a spot'. "I bet you like me so much that you love me," he teased happily, not realizing how close he was to the truth.
"Don't push me, Ketchum," she said darkly.
"Oh fine," he pandered. "But only because I want you in a good mood when I ask you to be my girlfriend." He said the words casually, but the look of hope in his eyes told her there was nothing casual about it. He hoped she said yes.
"For crying out loud, Ash," she growled, pushing herself out of his arms. "You just have to pick the worst possible moment don't you!"
"Well I would have said something earlier, but it's kind of hard to ask someone out when they're going out of their way to avoid you," he argued back, annoyed at her sudden change in mood. Wasn't she supposed to be happy about this? If she liked him like she said she did, shouldn't she be pleased that he wanted to commit himself to her and no one else?
"I had my reasons," she argued. "And this just proves it. You never think about anything, do you, Ash?"
"I think about you," he replied sarcastically. "And while you were busy with your reasons, I thought about this a lot. It's the only thing I've thought of since you kissed me yesterday."
Somehow she managed to overlook how sweet Ash was being and carried on her side of the argument. "Obviously you didn't think hard enough or you would have realized exactly what it meant for me to be your girlfriend, Ash," she yelled, her narrowed eyes darkening with sadness.
Ash caught the look, and immediately felt himself drain of anger. The look of sadness in her eyes filled him instead with worry and concern – whatever she wasn't telling him was going to be bad for both of them. He approached her slowly, cautiously taking her hands in his. "What is it, Myst?" he asked softly.
She made a gesture that was halfway between a shrug and a shake. "It's nothing," she muttered, looking down at their joined hands. "Just that, if you really want me to be your girlfriend, then I can't give you the cascade badge, and if you want the cascade badge I can't be your girlfriend. I told you it was nothing."
Ash gaped. She was right. How could he not have thought of that? If he received a cascade badge from her while they were in a relationship his entire Pokémon career would be called into question. They wouldn't just question the merits of their own battle, but every other battle he had ever been involved in, maybe even the various titles he had acquired. They'd search his whole life for any sort of impropriety and his career would undoubtedly be over.
But this was Misty? He couldn't give her up, could he?
"So it's you or the badge?" he asked, his voice heavy with disbelief. "If I get the badge, then we can never be together?"
"Maybe," she shrugged as though it was of little significance. "That really depends on you. I suppose if we were both still interested a year or so from now we could try again," she replied ignoring the voice in her head that reminded her that she would always be interested in Ash Ketchum.
"What difference would a year make?" he asked, scowling at the thought. Ash was never one for putting off gratification. He didn't want to be with Misty in a year, he wanted to be with her now, and the sooner they got back to making out the better in his books.
Misty was silent except for the soft sigh that left her lips. "We should get back to the battle," she said as she began walking back to the arena. "I guess all I have to say is . . . either way I understand. I know how important this is to you, Ash, and you'd be forgiven for putting that first.
"I promise I won't hold it against you if . . . you know . . ."
"I know."
The battle began once again as they returned to the arena. Ash called out Scooby-Doo and Misty in turn called Politoed, the Pokémon cheerfully clapping his hands as he readied him self for battle. Ash's mind was only half on the battle, and so it hadn't even occurred to him that a gastly might not have been the best choice to start with against Misty's water Pokémon.
When Misty called for a watergun from Politoed he barely had time to respond by commanding Gastly to fade and hit back with a confuse ray. Scooby disappeared at almost the exact moment that Politoed's attack would have hit the spectre. Gastly's eyes were glowing as he reappeared directly in front of Politoed, staring deeply into the amphibian's eyes until they shared the sinister glow.
Misty frowned as she considered her options. She could wait for the confusion to fade and leave Politoed defenceless to whatever attack Ash had planned – she was kind enough to assume he had a strategy in mind – or she could call for an attack and potentially harm her own Pokémon in the midst of the action. She decided to try using bubble defensively, knowing that even if the attack did end up hitting Politoed as well, it would do more damage to Ash's Pokémon than it would hers.
Ash called for a shadow ball and Scooby opened his mouth to gather the energy required for the attack. The spray of bubbles from Politoed hit neither their target nor their source in the midst of confusion, and Scooby's attack gathered force unabated.
"Politoed, dive!" Misty commanded once the amphibian broke from the spell of confusion. The Pokémon barely avoided hit by the glowing violet ball that had been aimed at him, the attack glancing his side as he dived under the surface.
With a sigh Ash called his next attack. He had half a mind to throw the whole thing – at least that way he wouldn't really have to think about it. It was one thing to lose something that you never had, but to lose a thing within your grasp and then having it taken away, that was something else entirely.
The black beam shot from the gastly's eyes as he attacked with deadly nightshade. The attack was matched by Misty's use of ice beam. Both attacks hit their target, and although Politoed's had been the more powerful of the two, the already greatly weakened Pokémon seemed almost unsteady after the onslaught.
"Politoed, return," she said, recalling the amphibian to his Pokémon. "You did great, Politoed. Now go, Seadra!"
Misty waited for Ash to call an attack, rather than jumping the bullet and having him evade her the same way he had with Politoed. Only once Ash had called for Scooby to use hypnosis (she assumed he was preparing to use dream eater) did she call for a water gun from Seadra. The powerful stream of water hit gastly dead on, knocking the poison type into the water as an added bonus. Scooby was in Seadra's territory now. One last water attack was enough to finish him off.
Scooby was recalled, and Bulbasaur sent in as his replacement. The bulbous dinosaur braced himself from attack, and Misty couldn't help but smile at the sight of Ash's old team member. In spite of his initial resistance, Misty had always had a soft spot for the grass-type, probably because with his stubbornness and immediate dislike of Ash, he reminded her a lot of herself.
So far they were on equal grounds. Bulbasaur was resistant to water attacks, but weak to ice – both of which Seadra had at her disposal. On the other hand, Seadra was weak to grass attacks, so it was anyone's game really.
Both trainers went straight for type trumps: a razor leaf from one side, and a blizzard attack from the other. The attacks seemed to foretell of how well matched to the Pokémon were as the majority of projectile from both attacks met one another and both Pokémon were hardly touched by the assault.
Ash's next call of attack was poison powder. As the fine dust of sleeping powder drifted towards Seadra, Misty called for the Pokémon to dive and follow it with an ice beam.
"Stay vigilant, Bulbasaur!" Ash called to his Pokémon. "And be ready to dodge."
"Bulba!" the vegetative dinosaur nodded, getting himself ready to pounce at any moment.
They both waited patiently for Seadra's onslaught, knowing it could come from any direction. Watching the pool carefully, Ash looked for even the tiniest ripple to tell him where Seadra was coming from, but the water was perfectly still and Seadra could be anywhere within the massive tank.
A minute went by, and then another, and everything seemed to hush in anticipation. They all knew what was coming, but the question was when. They had seen Seadra's blizzard, and if that was anything to go by the Pokémon was likely to have a pretty strong ice beam at its disposal.
The sudden splash of water as Seadra appeared echoed through the arena. She attacked immediately, not giving Bulbasaur the chance to dodge. The grass-type allowed him self to be pushed back by the attack, using the momentum to find his way onto another platform and reducing the damage that may be inflicted by the attack.
"Vine whip!" Ash called, as soon as Bulbasaur was back on solid ground. The vines shot out immediately and wrapped themselves around the sea horse before she had the chance to dive away. "Start powering up a solar beam."
"Toss him off, Seadra," Misty called, watching as her Pokémon struggled to wriggle its way out of Bulbasaur's tight grasp. Misty frowned – simple force certainly wasn't going to work, especially with Bulbasaur being the stronger of the two, so it was time to rely on wits. "Seadra, aim a water gun at the platform."
"Sea!" the Pokémon agreed. A stream of water shot form her mouth, aimed at the platform as suggested. As water began to cover the surface, Bulbasaur began to lose traction and was forced to release his foe or end up tossed into the water.
"You ready?" Ash asked, glancing at Bulbasaur who gave him a determined nod. "Bulbasaur, solar beam!"
"C'mon, Seadra," Misty commanded in response, "one last ice beam should do it!"
Bulbasaur directed his bulb in the direction of Misty's seadra, and Pokémon similarly readied itself for attack. The two powerful attacks streamed from their respective Pokémon, clashing and filling the arena with light and energy blinding the two trainers and their spectators.
When their vision returned, Seadra was floating belly up in the pool, obviously fainted by the attack, and Bulbasaur . . . Bulbasaur was frozen solid.
'What are the odds?' Ash thought ironically to himself. (A/N: 10%)
"Both Bulbasaur and Seadra are unable to battle," commented Daisy, her voice tinged with awe. "It comes down to just Pikachu and Staryu."
Misty and Ash returned their immobilized Pokémon and each sent their Pokémon into the field. This is what it came down to: Pikachu vs. Staryu. Ash's starter vs. Misty's first Pokémon; it was almost poetic in a grandiose, fated sort of way. There was no such thing as coincidence.
Ash called for a thunder shock and Misty responded by calling on Staryu to spin. Ash was thus shocked – to say the least – when Staryu's action actually deflected the attack.
Misty noted the look of shock on her best friend's face. "Neat trick, right?" she asked smugly, knowing he hadn't expected that defence. "We haven't quite mastered thunder shock, but I think this is a more useful use.
"Now," she continued, using Ash's surprise to her advantage. "Staryu, rapid spin!"
"Agility!" Ash called, quickly shaking himself out of his stupor as the starfish came spinning through the air towards his electric mouse. Pikachu dashed away, shuddering as he felt a swift wind sweep past him.
"Staryu, use swift attack."
"Pikachu, quick attack and follow it with a volt tackle."
Pikachu dodged deftly away from the oncoming attacks, which slashed through the air, quickly making his way to his opponent. He charged himself with electricity and increased his speed to power the attack.
Misty called for light screen as Pikachu advanced on her Pokémon, but seeing the power behind the attack, she wasn't sure what good it would do. She was right to be worried; Pikachu's attack broke right through Staryu's protection and hit the Pokémon hard, sending it flying back into the pool.
Not for the first time in her life, Misty was grateful of the rejuvenating affects that water had on her Pokémon. Hopefully it would help with some of the damage done by Pikachu's attack. Unfortunately, it also made Staryu a sitting target for Ash's next move.
Misty's eyes widened as Ash called for thunder. She called desperately for the starfish to get itself out of the water and start spinning once again. An electric attack would be even more devastating in water than on land, but thunder would be painful either way. She wondered whether Staryu's spin defence would be able to handle attack as powerful as thunder as she hadn't had the opportunity before now to test it against anything more powerful than a thunderbolt.
The battleground lit up with electricity as Pikachu let loose the attack. Misty watched her Pokémon carefully to see what sort of affect the attack was having. It was clear that Staryu's action was deflecting some, but not all of the attack, and while it was having a reduced affect on the star shaped Pokémon, it was having an affect none the less.
Misty called for another attack, her face hardening in determination. She knew this would be her last call, and so she was going to make it big. There was only one attack to call on now. "Staryu, hydropump!"
Well two could play at that game. Ash's call for thunder followed as powerful jets of water burst in Pikachu's direction. With a cry of war, Pikachu let loose a vast amount of energy, lighting up the arena once again. Both Pokémon were hit hard. It was all Pikachu could do to keep standing, but Staryu was down for the count.
"Staryu is unable to battle," Daisy's voice commented. "The battle like goes to the challenger – Ash Ketchum!"
Misty sighed, leaving her platform and meeting Ash halfway around the edge of the pool. This was it. Their moment of reckoning so to speak, and she wished it wasn't happening.
She was disappointed with herself for the loss. Things would have been so much easier if she had won. She had failed the both of them.
"I suppose you'll be wanting to claim your prize now," Misty said sadly, her eyes lowering to the ground. She refused to let him see how much his choice would affect her.
"Indeed I will," Ash replied with a smile. He stepped closer, gently lifting her face towards his with two fingers, and laying his lips against hers in a heart felt gesture of friendship and something very like love.
"But . . . the badge . . ." she gaped when he pulled away.
He cocked his head to the side and smiled at her expression. "There are fifteen other gyms in Kanto, Myst, and any of them will meet the Pokémon League requirements just as well as yours."
His expression softened as his eyes locked on hers. He lowered his voice as he continued. "But there's only one Misty Waterflower," he finished before capturing her lips once again.
"So, Misty?" he asked slyly as he broke away, loosely encircling his arms around her frame. "Will you be my girlfriend?"
"On one condition." She shrugged playfully, teasing lighting up her eyes. It was in that moment he knew that he would never be able to deny her anything – not when she was looking at him like that.
That smile, those lips, those eyes . . . they had surely been brought together to be his undoing. But for three words he would forgive whatever ungodly being had sent her to affect his demise.
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"Kiss me again."
~ End of Arc 1 ~
Ash: The Last Stand (Beginnings)