Chapter 1: Preparations
(Misty's POV)
Here I am...Misty...whose last name will be lost to time. I had no idea what the next few days held in store for me: pain, worries, love, loss, or a fate I could not evade.
As I looked over at my two friends, who were busily packing large duffle bags full of supplies, I couldn't help but become lost deep in thought.
Brock...true, he had been a bit of a pain at times chasing after every single girl he ever met (with precious few exceptions). He used to drive me nuts when he even implied that I was in love with Ash. The truth is, however, that I have a very strong connection with Brock. Not in a romantic way, mind you. He was the father, mother, and older brother I never had. He would cook, clean, encourage, support, and guide for us. The correct question to ask about Brock would be: What could he NOT do? Get a girlfriend? Perhaps Brock's curse could be better understood as nature's way of compensating for his special talents.
Brock's personal curse, however, was overshadowed by my own. In my case, the curse happened to take the form of a boy. More commonly known as Ash Ketchum: bike destroyer, lover of all things Pokemon, Team Rocket basher, prophecy fulfiller, heart stealer...the list goes on and on.
It's true. From the moment I met him, I knew he was something special. Perhaps it was the way he looked at me or the way he cared so much about Pokemon. Whatever it was, it lit my heart on fire.

I could never bring myself to tell him although I did let a few subtle hints slip. Knowing Ash, however, he probably wouldn't have caught on had I dropped to one knee and begged him to notice me. He only thought of me as a friend. Perhaps not even that: I let my temper get the best of me on numerous occasions, perhaps alienating any possible affection he had for me. I was my own worst enemy.

Over the time that we were apart, my love for him simply grew stronger. The more it grew, the more it hurt to be away from him. Ironically, being around him meant less pain for me but more for him (in the form of my mallet).

As I stood before him being around Ash again made me feel all fuzzy inside. The pleasant and loving Misty, which I thought no longer existed, began to make an encore performance on the theater of life. If only he would notice me.

"Hey Misty, you feel okay?" Brock turned to face me.

"Of course I'm okay!" I replied. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Sometimes you worry me." Brock shook his head and then turned his attention back to his work.

Well, at least Brock has some concern about me. Ash, as usual, remained oblivious. Sometimes I wondered if I wasn't always being so obnoxious to him all the time that he might actually forget that I existed.

I looked down at my own half-packed bags.

Brock had gathered together various supplies that he declared necessary for our adventure. He handed over to us a number of bags and told us to pack away as much of the stuff as we could and had given each of us a list of required supplies. He could be such a pain sometimes. Does he think we're still kids? Well, perhaps some of the fights I would get into were a LITTLE childish...but I only fought with him to get his attention anyway.
With a sigh, I went back through my list. I let my mind wander again.

"You know what's strange?" Brock spoke up while stuffing another sack of Pokemon food into one of his bags. "We never seem to see each other much...and when we do, Ash manages to drag us off on some sort of adventure."

"Hey! I didn't ask you guys to come with me!" Ash said defensively. "I can go by myself."

"Right..." I poked Ash in the side. "But who would make sure you wouldn't do anything harebrained?"

"What do you mean by that, Misty?" Ash snapped.

"Oh...I don't know. You were always getting us in some sort of trouble back when we used to travel together. I just assume that you haven't changed much." I replied.

"I don't always get us lost! Sometimes you and Brock did it too." Ask countered.

"Whatever..." I shrugged

"Why you little..." Ash's eyes narrowed.

"Cut it out already, you two!" Brock moaned. "Can't you guys even be in the same room without getting on each other's nerves?"

Ash mumbled something unintelligible.

"What did you say, Mr. Pokemon Master?" I poked my face next to his.

"I said...WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE SO HORRIBLE TO ME?" Ash yelled right in my face.

I recoiled, a bit surprised at his reaction.

"Hey, Ash...I never thought you really took me all that seriously." I said calmly.

"Well, I do." Ash crossed his arms and turned away.

"Ash, I'm-" I was about to apologize...right there and then...and perhaps say a lot more when suddenly Brock spoke up.

"Wow Misty, you are actually going to say it?" Brock grinned. "I was wondering when you were finally going to profess your love for him."

"WHAT?" I screamed, my face bright red with embarrassment and anger.

Ash turned back towards me, a confused look on his face.

Thinking quickly, I slammed Brock with my mallet.

"Aw, come on, Misty. After all these years, you still have that accursed thing?" Brock held his head in his hands.

I rolled my eyes and went back to packing.

I heard a phone ring.

"I'll get it." Brock moaned as he went to fetch the phone. "Hello?"

"Oh...it's for you, Ash." Brock handed it to Ash.

I think Ash had a pretty good idea of who was on the other end.

"Hi, Mom..." Ash took the phone gratefully.

Ash's mom has quite a character. I like her a lot, and I think Ash does too even if he does find her affection quite embarrassing. Ash looks cute when he's embarrassed.

Ash handed the phone over to Brock.

"Thanks, Brock." Ash smiled and went back to packing.

Just as Brock was about to place the phone back on the wall, it rang again.

"Hello?" Brock answered again then held it out to me. "Misty...it's for you."

"Hello?" I called into the receiver.

"Hey Misty…!" I heard a familiar voice call out from the other end. "It's, like your big sisters, giving you a call."

"Wait...let me guess. You don't want me to go because the gym duties would fall back on you." I said in an annoyed tone.

"Oh no, not at all...Like, whatever gave you that idea?" The voice on the other side replied.

"I don't know...something about a trip around the world?" I snapped

"Sorry about that..." The voice sounded genuine. "All we want to say is that we hope you have a safe trip and that you finally break down and tell Ash about your feelings for him."

"WHAT?" I yelled into the phone.

"Don't worry Sis; your secret is safe with us. Have a nice trip!" Then the phone went dead.

Why does EVERYONE know about my secret except for Ash?

"I have to tell him." I thought to myself. "Even if it is the last thing I do..."

Ambezua: Ok! Things are getting interesting, wouldn't you agree? Obviously, this chapter was from Misty's POV, and the next one will (predictably) be from Brock's POV... This chapter introduces quite a few more questions: How did Ash's mom, and Misty's sisters for that matter, know about Ash's trip? Why didn't Brock get a phone call? Why does Brock annoy Misty so much? (sorry, I had to throw that one in there...)

Misty: He annoys me because he is always teasing me! Give a girl a break once and a while will ya!

Brock: Come on, Misty... You knew that I was right!

Misty: Who cares?

Ash: I do! I wanted to hear you profess your sweet love to me...

(misty whacks ash with her mallet)

Ash: (groan)

Misty: As you were saying, Ambezua?

Ambezua: Thank you... Please R&R, and I will be seeing you all next chapter!

Summary: Ash, Misty, and Brock prepare their Pokemon teams, their gear, and make some calls to their families. Ash continues his oblivious trend...