A/N: Ah, this chapter came to me much more easily than the last one. I hope you all enjoy, especially since I was able to write this one so quickly! Part IV is on its way as soon as possible! I need to plan it out first in detail before I can start writing it, but I am super excited for this next part. We're more than half-way through this story, so hang tight, and have fun on the rest of the ride.

This chapter goes out to my fiance. Our four year anniversary as a couple was today (3/22/15), so we had a nice date night and a good time together.

See you all next time!

- Sarah

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or any of its characters.

Chapter Five: The Wrath of Misty

It was early one morning, the sky still dark outside. Misty sat in front of the videophone downstairs in the Pokémon Center. She stifled a yawn as Daisy talked to her, dressed in her bathrobe. Though tired, Misty had a hard time sleeping that night. As she was lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, she heard the vibration of her cell phone. Groaning, she rose from the mattress and dragged her heels along the way to the windowsill where the phone rested. When she saw the message from her sister to call, she thought that this time was as good as any. She sat there, holding her new egg, as her oldest sister chatted away.

"What do you mean you need me back right away?"

"Yeah. Running the gym is, like, totally harder than we remember it being," Daisy said. "So you'll leave today, right?"

"What about all of the reporters?" Misty asked.

"Oh them? They left, like, ages ago. So, are you coming home then?"

"The ferry doesn't run until tomorrow around noon," Misty answered.

"I guess, like, you're going to leave on that one?"

"Yeah, sure…"

"Great! I'll see you in a couple of days!" shouted her sister before the screen went blank.

"Bye…"

They could have gone that morning like Daisy wanted, but Misty was reluctant to leave. There was a festival on the main island that night celebrating the fall. It made little sense considering it was rarely frigid due to the active volcano. Regardless, she had a strong desire to go. It had been a while since she had experienced the aroma of the vendors and mellifluous chatter. Nostalgia overtook her body as a pair of arms wrapped around her. She whipped her head back to view Ash's smiling face behind her. Her heart leapt against her chest, and butterflies erupted in her stomach.

"What are you doing up so early?" he said, releasing his grip in order to sit next to her instead. The sun was beginning to break on the horizon, luminescence seeping into the otherwise dark lobby.

"I could say the same to you," she teased, nudging her shoulder against him.

"I was hungry," he confessed. "So I went to your room to see if you wanted an early breakfast. There was no answer at the door, so I came down to search for you."

"Hmm," she said. "How did you know that I wasn't in Brock's room?"

"Why would you be in his room at this time?"

"Use your imagination."

"Ack," said an alarmed Ash. "You mean—wait. You have a thing for him?"

"Don't be silly," she said, unable to contain the fit of giggles that wished to escape her torso. "I have never thought of Brock in that way. It would be like dating my brother—my older, slightly perverted brother—but my brother, nonetheless."

"Oh. Of course," Ash responded. His heart rate started to decrease. He was feeling sheepish as well. Why would he think that Misty would like Brock? No, her type was men such as Danny and Rudy. Perhaps, he would have a better shot if he became a gym leader. That was not going to happen any time soon. For now, his current plan would have to suffice.

"What would you do if we were to become a couple?" Misty inquired, intending to push the appropriate buttons.

"I don't know," Ash said, averting his eyes. "You're both my friends, so I'd be happy for you of course, as long as you were happy."

Ash would have been lying if he did not admit that jealously took hold of him the second he thought of them together. He managed to hide it well, however. At his words, Misty experienced a twinge of disappointment. She was hoping to hear an ounce of jealous in his voice, but alas none was found.

"You never answered my question," he said, breaking the silence. "Why are you down here?"

"So we digressed a bit," Misty pouted. "It's not the end of the world."

"Well?"

"Daisy sent me a text asking to call home, so that's what I was doing."

"What did she want?"

"She wants me to come back to the gym right away."

"Oh," said Ash, "When are we leaving?"

"I told my sister that we would be taking the ferry tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow?" Ashe said, his voice going up an octave. "We're leaving this suddenly?"

"Well, yeah," she said. "I had to lie to Daisy and say that there was no ferry today just to put it off for one more day."

"Are we still going to the festival tonight then?"

"Yeah, of course," she replied. "That's the main reason, I lied to my sister. I didn't want to miss it."

Realization rapidly set in as silence overcame Ash. This meant that he had barely a day left for the first part of his plan. Every moment spent with Misty in the increasing daylight was time wasted. As much as he craved her company, he had more crucial matters that needed attending. He sprung from his seat, frightening her in the process. He turned to exit through the door, but remembered that Pikachu was in his room sleeping. He began walking back to get his single Pokémon when Misty stopped him.

"Wait. Where are you going?" she demanded.

"I have to go do something today. Sorry, I just remembered. I need to get going right away."

"What about the festival?"

"Don't worry," he shouted as he fled the lobby. "I'll be back in time."

Sighing, Misty stood, staring at the empty doorway, consumed by her thoughts. Where was he going without her? It was possible that he had found some other girl and was heading to go meet her. The image of him with another woman caused a great pang to resonate within her. She knew that it would happen someday, but in her heart, she hoped it would be her.

In the absence of Ash, Misty spent the morning and afternoon with Brock. Their stuff was laid out on the beach all day as they enjoyed the blazing sun. It had been one of the warmest days since they had arrived weeks prior. Misty applied copious amounts of sunscreen to prevent turning into a lobster as Brock combed the beach for young, single women. Misty, clad in her favorite red bikini, sighed as she observed Brock get rejected by girl after girl. As she watched on as a tall blonde slapped him across the face, a nudging in her arms diverted her attention. The egg, which she had been holding, was shaking. For a second, she believed that it was going to hatch. However, it stopped almost as suddenly as it had started. She pressed her ear against the shell as Brock came back to their blanket, dejected.

"Why don't any of these women want me, Misty?"

"Because, believe it or not, Brock, we actually don't like getting hit on," Misty said, her ear still pressed against the egg.

"What are you doing?" he asked as he sat down next to her.

"It was moving a minute ago," she answered, setting it back down into her lap. "I think that it might hatch soon."

"What do you think will be inside?"

"A water Pokémon would be fabulous, but I guess it doesn't matter to me so much."

"Maybe I should toss in the towel," Brock said, reeling the conversation back to his dilemma.

"I think that you're trying too hard. Not every woman wants a hook-up—or even likes men for that matter," she said.

"Trying to tell me something, Misty?"

"If you are insinuating that I am a lesbian, then you are quite mistaken," she snapped.

"Just checking," he said with a chuckle.

"Anyway," she said, rolling her eyes. "My point is that not every woman is looking to have sex, especially when you come off really strong like that. It makes you look desperate, if not creepy."

"But I am desperate. It's been too long!" he groaned. Brock turned his head to give her a once over. "Hey, Misty—"

"The answer is no."

"You're no fun," he said, flopping back on the blanket draped against the warm sand. "You know it wouldn't mean anything."

"Brock, it would be like having sex with my brother," she said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Yeah," he sighed. "I suppose you're right. Guess I'm going solo again tonight."

"Ew. Too much information."

"You'd love to do that with Ash though."

"Yeah," she said wistfully. "That would be pure bliss."

She clasped her hand over her mouth, realizing that she had blurted it out for everyone to hear, opposed to keeping it inside of her head. Brock bolted upright and stared at her, wide-eyed. He had anticipated her telling him off for even suggesting it. This had been unforeseen. Brock had managed to get her to reveal her cards to him, something that he had only been able to do on one previous occasion. Brock recalled the one time where Misty had told him that it was much harder to like someone who didn't like you back. When questioned about how she knew about that, she had become alarmed and claimed that she had heard about it from someone. She had been talking about Ash all along.

"F-forget I said that," she cried, her countenance turning bright scarlet.

"Nope, you are not getting out of this one this time, Misty."

"No really, Brock," she said, her words flying out of her mouth as fast as a commercial jet. "I don't know why I said that."

"I do," Brock said in the most serious tone Misty had ever heard coming from him. "You're still in love with him."

"Don't be silly, Brock. We're friends, nothing more."

"Quit lying, Misty," Brock said. "There's nothing to gain from denying it. I know that you had a crush on him when we were younger. I thought, maybe you grew out of that and moved on from him. Watching you though, I see the way you look at him. You love him."

She knew that she was not going to get out of this now. Brock would not let this go. He was right, though, and Misty knew it. She was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him. She had always been in love with him, from the first moment that they met, even if she did not know it at the time. Her world forever shifted the day she pulled him from the water.

"Fine," she replied, resigned. "I love him. I always have. What difference does it make anyway? I'm pretty sure that he doesn't feel the same way, so what can I do?"

"How would you know that without talking to him?" Brock replied. "He might surprise you."

"What if he doesn't?" she said, clutching the egg closer to her chest. "I know that if he knows, but doesn't love me in the same way that I love him, that it is going to get awkward between this. I finally have him back again. I had missed him so much that the pain from it was almost impossible to bear. How could I risk losing him forever like that?"

"Misty—"

"Brock, please do not push me into telling him when I am nowhere ready to do that," she said, getting up. She brushed the sand off of her toned legs. "Promise me you won't tell him?"

"Of course," he replied. "I wouldn't do that to you. You know that."

"Thanks," she said, grabbing her bag. "I'll see you tonight. I want to get ready for the festival. I'll meet you downstairs in the Pokémon Center."

She waltzed off in the direction of the Pokémon Center, Brock's eyes following her movements until she was no longer visible. This whole situation was frustrating to Brock. He was certain that Ash had deeper feelings for Misty than he would readily admit. Simultaneously, Misty would not reveal her emotions to Ash, and Brock couldn't tell him because she would kick his ass. As much as he wanted them to get their shit together, he feared the wrath of Misty more.

The sky was dark, the stars twinkling above the Pokémon Center where Brock and Misty waited for their friend. As each minute passed, Misty grew more anxious. Ash said that he would be able to meet them in time for the festival. However, there they stood, past eight o'clock with the festival already started, and no Ash in sight. Brock was wearing a plain faded blue yukata, his arms crossed as his eyes moved back and forth between the clock and the doors at the front of the lobby. He was holding Misty's egg as she paced across the floor phone in hand. Her yukata was more elaborate than Brock's. It was blue as well, though hers was closer to cerulean. There were white bubbles in the pattern, along with pictures of orange and white koi. Her long flowing hair was secured in a clip, strands of hair in the front framing her face. Her fingers flew across the keypad, writing a frantic text message to Ash. After several agonizing moments of silence, she resorted to calling him. Several rings with no answer forced her to resort to leaving him a message.

"Ash, where are you?" she demanded into the receiver. "Please, call me back when you get this. I'm getting worried."

"Misty," Brock said, cautiously.

"What?" she snapped at him.

"Sorry to interrupt your conversation with Ash's voicemail but, do you think he was running late and figured that we would end up meeting him at the festival?"

"I don't know," she said, continuing to pace. "If you want to go on ahead, you can do so. I'll stay here and wait for him."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, and if you do find him out there, tell him to at least call me."

"Sure," he said handing her the Pokémon egg. "I'll catch you later. Good luck."

"Thanks."

Brock strolled out of the doors at an even pace, leaving Misty to fill the silence with the echoing of her wooden sandals against the tile floor. Panic was starting to set inside of her core. No matter what she did, nothing could qualm the tightening knot inside of her stomach. She tried once more to reach him on his phone. Again, she was greeted with painful silence. Where was he?

If something had happened to him, she could not forgive herself. She had made no protest of him going alone. She should have at least offered to go with him. What if what he was planning on doing was dangerous? Worse yet, what if he had been depressed over these past few weeks, and she had failed to notice? What if he had decided to do something drastic? She was on the verge of a nervous breakdown when she heard footsteps and a gruff voice behind her.

"Sorry, I'm late. I ran into some trouble on the way back."

Before her, standing between her and the front desk, was Ash, dressed in a forest green yukata, which was adorned with a pattern of white fir trees. Relief was the tsunami that flooded into her body at the sight of him and Pikachu. The electric mouse rested on his trainer's shoulder, his fur ruffled and slightly dirty, causing Misty to wonder what they were doing all day. Ash stood there, afraid to say more, the trace of a smile plaguing his lips.

"Where have you been?" Misty shrieked, tears forming in her eyes. Ash was so alarmed by her response that he took a few steps back, eventually reaching the reception desk.

"I got side-tracked a few times. The important thing is that I am here now."

"What was so important that you were doing that you couldn't pick up your goddamn phone?"

"I uh—"

What were you doing?" she yelled once more, this time getting in his face.

"I can't tell you right now," he said.

"Listen, you," she said grabbing him by the collar with one of her hands. "I was worried sick about you. I tried texting and calling with no response. What am I supposed to think when you don't respond to me like that?"

Ash was aware that he should have been scared shitless then. Misty was the most intimidating person whom he had ever met. She was stunning when she was angry, making it difficult for Ash to be petrified by her. She had lost that power she had to scare him as soon as he realized how much he truly loved her. Instead of fear, the emotions that he was experiencing in that moment were guilt and sadness. He felt horrible about making her worry like that. At the same time, he couldn't reveal what he was doing, not unless he wanted to ruin the surprise he had for her. It was something that he had worked too hard on to destroy that now.

"I'm sorry, Mist," he said. "I should have answered your calls."

"Too right," Misty said, releasing her grip on his clothing. "Another thing, mister—huh?"

A violent shaking from the egg in her arms stopped Misty short. She stared in awe as it continued to move. A bright white light emanated from it and filled the lobby. She set the egg down on the floor, crouching down in front of it. The whiteness shifted from an egg shape into a star shape. The light dissipated, revealing the Cleffa behind it. It was bright pink with lime green ears, not the usual coloration. Misty thought that this made it even cuter. She picked up the Pokémon gleefully.

"Oh, you're so adorable!" she squealed as she brought it closer to her chest.

"Cleffa!" the pink Pokémon exclaimed, happy to see Misty, too.

"Yeah, just like its owner," Ash piped in.

"Huh?" Misty said. Her cheeks grew pink when it dawned on her that Ash was saying that she was cute as well. "Don't think that you're going to butter me up to get on my good side again."

"But Misty, you're not a piece of bread. Why would I want to put butter on you?"

"It's an expression!" she growled, holding Cleffa with one arm, freeing her other hand in order to rest it on her hip. "I'm still mad at you."

"I bet you I can change that," he said, grabbing her hand. "I'll buy you an ice cream."

"With sprinkles?"

"Of course," he said. "Anything else?"

"How about a shopping spree?"

"Don't push it."

Misty's heart raced as they strolled out of the Pokémon Center, her hand firmly captured in his grip. A grin formed as they journeyed together to the festival grounds in the tepid night. As they ran to join Brock, Misty thought nostalgically about their first festival. They spent their time dancing and eating ice cream cones together while poking fun at Brock's romantic endeavors. Being with Ash like this made her fall all over again. As the two sat on a bench together, watching the fireworks, she knew that never wanted that night to end.

End of Part III