Author's Note:

Next chapter up and on time! 4th time in a row! WHOOP!

Well I hope you enjoy this chapter!

But don't forget! After you read, REVIEW! The reviews I get mean a lot to me! And ya know... I wouldn't mind if you favorited/followed either, hehe... ;P

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Now stop reading my boring rant and get reading the good stuff!

Disclaimer: Still no Pokemon for Eeveetrainer... *cries in corner*

Chapter 4: A Time to Talk

Misty just stared out the window looking at the passing trees. She remained mostly silent during the trip and used the time to go over the events of the past few days. Her emotions were going in too many different directions and she felt like she would break at any moment. She thought she would never see Ash again but now he was back. Misty wanted more than anything to be close to Ash again, but now that the chance had presented itself, she felt very hesitant letting him near her again.

Ash insisted he stay at the hospital to make sure Misty was okay. After Misty had calmed down she felt like she needed some time alone. She told Ash she'd be okay for two days until she was released but he was much too stubborn for that. He ended up sleeping in the empty bed in Misty's room. Misty felt warmed that he wanted to be there for her, but at the same time she wanted to push him away. Right now Misty wasn't sure if she wanted him back in her life.

Misty was still hurt from what Ash had said to her. "I don't want you around anymore." There was a stinging sensation throughout her body when she first heard those words. It gripped her heart and spread through her veins like poison. Every artery and vein ached. It spread to her head and she felt like she would faint. It reached into the pit of her stomach and the wind had been blown right out of her. It reached her knees and she felt them almost buckle beneath her.

Those words kept finding their way into her mind. That same feeling of total suffering came back whenever she thought of them. It killed Misty whenever she thought about it. She tried moving on but that only caused her more pain.

A "Welcome to Pallet Town" sign caught her attention, "Shades of Your Journey Await." Maybe this is a new journey for me. Maybe I can finally be happy here. Misty shook her head slightly at the idea and decided to put her feelings aside for the time being and focus on recovering. She couldn't do much of anything in her current state and needed someone to take care of her, even if it was Ash.

The car ride to Pallet Town from the far side of Viridian City took about thirty minutes. Misty knew from experience the Ketchem residence was eight minutes away from the welcome sign.

"It's been a long time since you've been here dear, but I'll assure you not much has changed." Delia spoke with a warm smile. This was the first thing that had been said since nearly the beginning of the trip and it startled the other passengers. Realizing what Delia had said, Misty nodded and returned the smile.

The older woman always spoke fondly of how Pallet town remained small and homey. Misty had to admit she loved it that way too. Sure she loved it when she lived in Cerulean City, but she treasured how quiet and peaceful Pallet Town was.

As they neared the street Misty had become so familiar with a wave of nostalgia filled her heart. They turned the corner and she knew the destination lay 4 houses down. She didn't pay any attention to the other houses but instead kept her eyes locked on her temporary place of residence.

It was just how she remembered it. It had pale blue siding and a red roof. She loved the white picket fence that lined the yard. Misty even loved the bright orange mail box that sat in front of the road. The garden looked like it was just beginning to flourish. Delia always loved to keep her garden in the best condition. She noticed that another car was parked in front of the house and concluded that it must have been Ash's. She noticed that Delia's trusty Mr. Mime was watering the plants nearest to the road. As the car started to pull in front of the house, the pantomime Pokémon began to wave and cheered its name.

"Hi Mimey we're back!" Delia stepped out of the driver's seat and went to greet her Pokémon and they walked into the house. This left just Ash and Misty outside.

Misty opened the door to the front passenger's side of the car and waited for Ash to give her the crutches she received from the hospital. Misty would need them if she had any hope of moving around on her own for the next few weeks, but she still wasn't happy about it.

She was a little clumsy with them but managed to make it out to the car from her hospital room. When she made it to the car Delia insisted that Misty take the front passengers seat to allow her leg more room. This left Ash to squeeze his rather long legs into the back of the sedan.

Right now Misty was observing just how much of a problem the Pokémon Master was having. He couldn't maneuver his feet out of the car first so he decided to take a different approach. He decided to back out of the car and swing his legs under him just at the last second. Unfortunately, the door wouldn't stay in place and he ended up falling right on his back with his legs resting on the seat he previously occupied.

Misty couldn't help chuckling at this. As Ash got up and dusted himself off, he glanced over at the redhead laughing at him. He was happy to see that she still felt pleasure from his pain and decided to go along with it. Ash walked over to her and crossed his arms displaying a childish pout.

"Guess your wish to be taller isn't as glamorous as you thought, huh?" Misty mocked, and then tilted her head up towards Ash's face. She snickered again seeing the expression on his face.

"Hey that hurt!" He cried out and added a foot stomp for more dramatic humor.

"Oh stop your whining and get my crutches." She held out a finger towards the trunk and snapped her head in the opposite direction with her nose in the air. She stopped laughing at him but there was still a smile on her face.

"Well looks like you're already back to bossing me around," Ash said so is a sarcastic manner. As he said this he walked away but could hear her trying to come up with a comeback. He handed her the crutches and the both of them made their way into the house.

The inside of the house was the same too. She did notice some new pictures but other than that it was still the "home, sweet home" she remembered.

"You remember where the guest room is right dear?" Delia was busy putting some things together in the kitchen, but then again she always seemed to be doing that.

"Yeah I remember." Misty began to make her way over to the stairs and Pikachu raced up the steps. Probably time for his afternoon nap. She remembered that Pikachu loved getting a nap in the middle of the day. Like trainer like Pokémon I guess. Misty stopped right in front of the first step and paused.

"Something wrong?" Misty turned her head to see that Ash was right behind her. She turned her head away and looked at the floor.

"I don't know how I'm going to actually get up the stairs…" Misty said is a quiet tone trying as hard as possible to not be embarrassed. She turned around and sat on the second step up and sitting the crutches on the ground in front of her. She put her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands.

"Oh." Ash said softly as he began to rub the back of his head. Suddenly an idea popped into his mind but he wasn't sure how Misty would react to it. He looked down at her with a slight pout across her lips. Well it looks like this is going to be the only way, but I hope she doesn't beat me for it later. He cringed a little at the thought of her wailing on him again, just like old times.

Misty was still trying to figure out a way for her to get up and down the stairs but her thoughts were getting her nowhere. All of a sudden a pair of strong arms lifted her up bridal style. She was startled by this but when she realized that Ash was effortlessly carrying her up the stairs, she could only look down with a slight blush across her face.

"What are you doing?" Misty couldn't look at Ash for fear her would notice the red tint on her cheeks. She could fell the toned muscles of his chest through his shirt.

"I'm carrying you up the stairs. There is no point in letting you just sit there." Ash was glad Misty wasn't looking at him because his face was heating up similar to her own. Ash had decided to put his own feelings for Misty to the side and just focus on helping her recover, but those feelings would always remain.

The duo made their way down the familiar looking hallway. Misty caught a glimpse a new picture hanging on the wall. This one was taken right after Ash had gained his Champion status. He was on the field and all of his friends and family were there. It wasn't a posed photo so it caught the real excitement on everyone faces. She didn't have very much time to examine the photo before they entered Misty's new room.

Ash sat Misty down on the bed and she looked around the room. It was just as she remembered. The floral comforter, the desk that sat across from the bed and even the pictures stayed the same. Misty loved how familiar this room felt. It was so comforting to her.

"Mom said she put some clothes and stuff in the closet and drawers that you can borrow until she has the chance to go out shopping for you." Ash explained as he opened the closet and pointed at the dresser. Delia had to bring Misty a set of new clothes when she was getting discharged because the outfit she arrived in was no longer usable.

"I'll have to remember to thank her later. She's been so kind to me throughout this." Misty put her head down in shame. Misty never liked being so helpless; she had always prided herself on being independent and strong. Right now she just felt so weak and broken. Ash could sense how Misty was feeling and sat down on the bed next to her.

"She does it because she cares about you Misty. We all do. We want to make you feel better and help you through whatever it is that you are dealing with." Ash spoke in a very comforting manner that made Misty feel a little better and she nodded.

Realizing there wasn't much more he could do, Ash stood up and made his way to the door. "You should get some more rest. I'll wake you up when dinner's ready." Ash left and shut the door behind him. This left Misty alone again. She stopped herself from doing any self-evaluation and decided that Ash was right. She sat back and put her head on the pillow. Misty was still exhausted from all of the recent events and was asleep before she knew it.

The sunset seemed like it was on fire. The warm colors seemed to meld into one and set the sky ablaze.

Misty sat on a patch of soft grass near the top of a mountain. She gazed at the setting star in wonder. The brilliant reds, yellows and oranges never quiet stayed the same as the sun continued to retreat from the sky.

"I just love watching the sunset from up high. It really lets you see all the colors." A familiar voice came from behind her but she didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

Ash came and sat down next to Misty and they continued to watch the sun go down. They felt at total peace. The remainder of the sky was clear and there was a slight breeze. This moment was absolutely perfect.

"You know why I love the sunset Mist?" Ash broke the calm silence but never broke his line of sight with the picture in the sky.

"How come?" Misty had turned her head toward him. He looked so happy and calm. His warm brown eyes were shining in the suns beams.

"Because of the color," Ash twisted his head and their eyes locked. He stared into her azure eyes and fell into their trance. "The color reminds me of you. Whenever I see the sunset it reminds me of your hair." Ash moved a stand of hair out from in front of her face and back behind her ear.

Misty blushed slightly as the tips of his fingers brushed her face and a warm smile appeared on her lips. Ash move a little closer to her but their stare never broke. He loved how her hair shined in the fading light of the sun.

Unconsciously their heads started moving closer and closer. The sun was just about to go down fully and their faces were only inches apart. Misty began to close her eyes and tilt her head slightly to the right.

Their lips were just centimeters away and they could feel each other's breath. The last of the suns beams disappeared behind the distant hills just as they were about to kiss, but their lips never met.

The ground beneath Misty began to crumble. She didn't even have a second to react as she began to fall. She tried to reach out to something but caught nothing.

Suddenly Misty felt a grip around her wrist. She held her breath as she looked down and saw nothing but black in the night. When she realized she was no longer falling she looked up to see Ash holding onto her arm for dear life.

"Ash…. Please don't let go!" Misty yelled up to him with terror in her eyes.

"I would never let go of you Misty. You mean too much to me to leave like this." Ash's eyes reflected the same amount of terror. "Misty you have to do something"

"You really expect me to do something for you while I'm dangling from a cliff about to plunge to my death!?" Misty's shouted at him.

"You have to wake up Misty." Ash kept his gaze on her.

"What the hell are you talking about? I am awake!" Misty was confused and angry at what he was saying.

"Wake up Misty. Please wake up." A tear slid down Ash's face on onto hers. This caused tears to well in Misty's eyes. "Please… Wake up Misty."

Misty shot straight up. Her heart was racing and she was sweating lightly. She nearly knocked the tray
Ash was holding right out of his hands. She raised a hand to her chest and was relieved it was only a dream. She tried to calm herself and looked up at the raven-haired man standing next her.

"Are you okay Misty?" Ash's brow was folded in worry and his eyes were filled with concern.

Misty turned away and muttered, "I'm fine."

"You sure?" Ash raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"I just had a bad dream. I'll be fine." Misty didn't want to tell Ash about her dream. One reason was because she didn't want him to worry and the other was because she was unsure of how she felt about it.

"If you're sure." Ash didn't believe her but he didn't want to press the subject any further. He had decided that Misty would confide in him when she was ready. He didn't want to push her, but he wasn't sure how patient he could be. He wanted to know what happened to her soon so he could help her recover quicker.

"I am." Misty said so in a sure voice. Noticing the tray in Ash's hand again she picked her head up to get a better look. "What do you have there?"

Forgetting that he even still had the tray in his hand looked down and lowered it toward Misty. "I thought you might be hungry so I brought you some dinner." Ash sat the tray down on Misty's lap.

"Oh you didn't have to, I could have come down. But thanks." Misty looked down at the meal in front of her and the smell met her nose. It smelt absolutely delicious. It was a large bowl of delicious looking stew. Sitting next to the bowl on a separate plate looked like some freshly baked biscuits. It was a simple meal but it could easily be one of the best if prepared right and this one was perfect.

"If you'd like I could eat up here with you too. Mom went back to the restaurant a little while ago so I'd be eating alone too." Ash nervously scratched the back of his head as he looked up at the ceiling waiting for a response.

Misty was a little touched that Ash had brought her dinner in bed so she decided not to turn down his offer. "Sure that sounds nice."

"Great!" Ash jumped up a little bit and a big smile appeared on his face. "I'll be right back." He left the room but returned soon with another tray for himself in one hand and a fold up table in the other. He unfolded the table with precision and sat his tray down. His tray had almost twice as much of food then hers. He walked over to the desk and dragged over the rolling chair and sat down next to her.

Misty watched this and realized he must have been planning this. "You sure got that set up quickly. Almost like you had that planned this." Misty narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Well I-I… I just thought we could catch up a little bit. We haven't seen each other in a long time." Ash tried to think of an excuse quickly which turned out to be closer to the truth. Ash did want to catch up with Misty.

"Uh huh." Misty took a bite of the stew and was amazed at how much more delectable it was then she thought. "Wow! This is great! Your mom really out did herself this time," Misty exclaimed taking an even bigger bite along with some biscuit.

"Actually I made it." Ash said casually and he began to eat.

Misty nearly choked on the food in her mouth and began to cough violently. Ash stood up quickly and began to pat Misty's back with one hand and hand her the glass of water from her tray with the other. As she began to catch her breath and Ash realized she was okay he asked what happened.

"Sorry I was just a little surprised that you actually made this. I didn't know you could cook, let alone cook well." Her surprise showed on her face.

"Well I guess I picked up a couple of things traveling with Brock and Cilan for so many years." Ash rubbed the back of his head humbly.

"Well I'm sure grateful for it right now," Misty exclaimed and they both began to devour the food again.

Misty began to think about the dream she just had and tried to figure out what it meant. It wasn't the first time she had dreamt about her and Ash enjoying each other's company but this one ended differently. She often found herself falling away at the end but this time he reached out to save her. He even shed a tear for her. She tried to decide if this new dream meant something and someone was trying to tell her something.

She decided not to think about it anymore and looked over at Ash eating like he hasn't seen food in days. Well I guess some things really never change.

"So how's life as a Champion like?" Misty was always curious as to how Ash actually enjoyed his new title but never really got a chance to ask.

"It's okay I guess. The paparazzi don't follow me around as much anymore, which I am extremely happy about. I thought the attention would be nice but it got annoying really fast," Ash rolled his eyes with annoyance but continued. "The title pays really well too and living here I have been able to save up my money for when I decide to get my own place. Four days a week I have to go to Indigo Plateau to train and battle which I absolutely love! They have really nice equipment there and my Pokémon have gotten a lot stronger because of it. On the other hand, I'm not a fan of all the paperwork. I never knew being the Master would require me to do so much paper work… But I do get to help the G-men on some of their missions!" Ash really loved being the Master and being able to assist the G-men.

Misty could see the happiness in his eyes as he explained his job and had to smile back at him. "So I guess you'll be spending some extra time there soon since you've been home so much the past few days."

"Actually I had some vacation time saved up so I decide to take a month and a half off. It's pretty slow up there this time of year since the league just ended and I thought you'd like some company since mom would probably be at the Pallet House most of the time." Ash explained his reason a little nervously.

Misty felt a warm sensation grow inside her chest hearing that Ash gave up Pokémon for over a month just to keep her company. Misty couldn't remember Ash giving up Pokémon for anything. She smiled at him and said, "Thanks. That means a lot."

Ash returned a larger smile knowing she was happy with his gesture and the duo began to eat again.

Misty kept her smile as she began to think of all the nice things Ash had done for her in just a short week. He really is trying to make this up to me. Maybe I should give him another chance. He was my best friend after all. But what if I get hurt again? I don't know if I could handle that…. Misty smiled a little at the thought of finally being able to spend more time with this sweet and kind Ash, but frowned when she still felt something holding her back.

"Hey Misty is it okay if I ask you a question?" She was torn from her thoughts and looked over at Ash.

"Umm, sure. Ask away." Misty was a little nervous as to what Ash was going to ask her but tried not to show it as she continued to work on her food.

"What happened to all of your Pokémon? I mean I've never seen you without them and I know how much you love your Pokémon. Did Team Rocket steal them and you got hurt trying to get them back?" Ash knew that this was risky but he needed to know if this was true. He would personally go after the scum that did this to Misty and every second counted if he wanted to get her Pokémon back to her safely.

Unprepared for what he just asked, she paused with her spoon midway to her mouth and her jaw open. She closed it after a second and clenched it. Misty stared intently down biting her bottom lip and Ash could see clearly that he upset her.

"I'm sorry Misty. I didn't mean to upset you," Ash placed his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. "But if they did please tell me so I can get them back for you."

She shook her head quickly and leaned her back against the head board breaking Ash's contact with her.

"No. That's not what happened." She paused as she took a deep breath and began to speak again. "When I went back to the gym I had to register all of my Pokémon there so I would be able to use them in official gym battles. When I left my sisters wouldn't let me bring them with me since they were technically gym property now." Misty loved all of her Pokémon and was heartbroken when she was forced to leave them behind.

"Oh. I'm really sorry Mist. I know how much you cared about them." Ash didn't know what else he could say. He could only imagine how much Misty would be hurting considering he loved all of his Pokémon too. "At least they have nice big pools to swim around in and plenty of friends to play with. I'm sure your sisters are taking good care of them."

"Yeah you're right." Misty just kept looking down not even phased by Ash's reassuring words.

An idea to get Misty's mind off her Pokémon and cheer her up popped into Ash's head. He jumped out of his seat and ran across the room to his desk and started rummaging through its drawers.

Misty looked up at him curiously, unsure of what he was doing. The thoughts of her Pokémon slipped out of her mind and she focused on what this unpredictable man was doing. "What are you looking for," She asked from across the room but he continued to ignore her.

"Where is it? It has to be in one of these drawers," Ash mumbled to himself. Finally he found what he was looking for and ran back over to Misty. He held it in front of her face like it was a prize.

"What's so special about a marker?" She tilted her head, still curious as to what the Pokémon Master was up to.

"I want to be the first one to sign your cast!" He exclaimed with such a childish enthusiasm that Misty just had to smile at. His big brown eyes were shining with enthusiasm. "Come on! I've always wanted to be the first to sign someone's cast!"

Misty smiled even more and gestured toward her cast. "Have a blast."

Ash knelt down next to her bed and tapped the marker against his chin as he began to ponder what to write. He finally figured it out and began to carefully write.

When he was finished he stood back up and watched her read his handy work.

"I hope you feel better soon Mist. You're going to need this leg to chase me around just like old times. :P 3 Ash"

Misty couldn't help but laugh at this as old times of chasing Ash around popped in her head. Whether they were serious or playful she smiled brighter at each moment. What Misty loved the most about this little note was how he signed it.

Ash watched Misty's face as she read his note and couldn't help but feel that warm sensation fill his chest again. Seeing Misty with a smile made Ash so happy.

Ash loved to see Misty this happy. And he had the perfect idea of how to make her even happier.

AWWWWW! Isn't Ash just the cutest!

But what does Ash have up his sleeve this time around? I guess you'll just have to stay tuned in order to find out!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to all the reviews I'll be reading! ;)

And don't forget that I'm always open to ideas! And if I dont use them for this story they might work perfectly in the future stories I'm planning!