Hey Everybody! Well, here's chapter twelve. I know I said last week like I felt as if the story were in "free fall mode", but this week I feel much better because I have introduced a new sub-plot that will definitely interest most (if not all) of you, and will certainly help develop the main plot of the story and the characters. As per usual, can't really talk much about it, but I will say that this chapter involves battling and khaki jeans, so what more can you ask for from a fic? Anyway, I hope you enjoy it, but even if you don't PLEASE REVIEW! I know I sound spoiled, but last week I had a record number of views for my story in one day (433), but also had a near-record low number of reviews for the chapter (10), when I usually receive about fifteen. I'm not a jerk who says that he won't write anymore until I receive more comments (seriously, I've heard of people who do that…what the crap?), and I understand that many of y'all are busy with lives of your own, but even if you only have time for a one-word compliment or flame, I would love to hear it. As I always say, I'm writing this story for y'all, not myself, so I want to hear what you think! REVIEW PLEASE, and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, or any of its affiliated companies including, but not limited to, 4Kids, The Pokémon Company, Game Freaks, or Cartoon Network. The characters written within this fic are solely based upon the fictional characters created by these companies, and the story is not meant to, nor will it, receive any monetary funding.

Characters' Ages:

Ash: 16

Brock: 21

Misty: 17

Dawn: 13

Delia: 40

Oak: 55

Gary: 16

"Alright, it's my turn!" yelled the determined young trainer as he took his place about sixty feet opposite Ash.

"You're on!" Ash replied, throwing his next pokeball between the two battlers. In a flash of light, Torkoal appeared from the red and white sphere.

"I choose you, Rattata!" screamed the boy. A second later, the purple rat Pokémon was facing Ash's gigantic turtle Pokémon.

"Let the battle begin," announced another young boy standing on a park bench several feet away from where the actual battle was about to take place. He had been refereeing the battles between Ash and the challengers all morning. However, Ash had promised him an autographed photo and six-on-six battle for his cooperation, so he was more than happy to oblige.

"Rattata, use Quick Attack," the ten year old commanded.

Instantly, Rattata disappeared from where he had been standing and was to the right of Torkoal. As he began to charge forward at the fire type, Ash made his move.

"Torkoal, Harden!" he commanded.

THUD

The Rattata had hit his opponent head-first with the Quick Attack, and was now paying the price for it. Torkoal's shell had glistened as it became rock-hard, causing the small rat Pokémon to take serious damage for its attempt at an attack.

"Rat, rat, at," the dazed Pokémon whimpered as it swayed back and forth. Both trainers watched it intently, waiting to see if it could recover for another attack. However, a few moments later, the Pokémon fell to its side with a defeated look in its eye.

"Rattata is unable to battle, Torkoal is the winner!" cried the young boy from his spot on the bench.

"Great job Torkoal," Ash said, approaching his friend and patting its shell.

"Koooooal," it replied happily.

As Ash returned his Pokémon to its pokeball, he went over to his opponent, who was fussing over his injured battling partner.

"Don't worry," Ash comforted as he stole a glance at the beat up Rattata. "He'll be fine. You just need to show him to Nurse Joy over at the Pokémon Center."

"Really?" asked the boy, appearing hopeful as he heard his idol's words of wisdom. "What if he broke his skull?"

"You sound as worried as me when I started out," Ash replied, laughing. "I used to fret over my Pokémon constantly, which is a good thing. But you need to make sure that you don't overreact to an injury your Pokémon gets. Your Rattata really is fine, he just needs a little rest, kay?"

"Okay," the boy replied gratefully. "Thanks for battling with me. I thought that if I could beat you in a one-on-one battle, that would mean I could be Champion someday."

"Don't worry about it," Ash said flippantly. "I've just had experience. If you and your Pokémon keep working hard, I'm sure y'all will be just as strong as me and my team. Heck, you might end up challenging me for my title someday."

"I hope so," said the boy as he recalled the Rattata. "Can I have your autograph before I go?"

"Sure thing," Ash said. "What do you want me to sign?"

"How about my Rattata's pokeball?" asked the boy, sounding excited at the thought.

"Okay!" Ash agreed. He loved giving autographs.

Despite this cheery scene however, in the distance Misty and Brock were not nearly as pleased about what was going on.

"Ugh," Misty said, watching Ash give another autograph. "He just loves being the center of attention, doesn't he?"

"He sure does," Brock agreed tiredly. They had been at the park since six that morning, and as it neared noon both the breeder and leader lost their interest in what their friend was doing.

"This is all Lieutenant Surge's fault," Misty complained as she let her head fall back against the large oak tree she and Brock were lying under.

"How do you figure?" asked Brock.

"How do you think everyone in Vermillion suddenly knew where we were?" asked Misty, sounding angry. "That loud-mouth gym leader is like a rock star around here. I bet that he told everyone he saw that we were hanging around, and that's how they figured it out."

"Well, even if that is true, we shouldn't blame Lieutenant Surge for this," Brock pointed out. "I mean, after all, Ash is the one who agreed to take on all challengers and sign autographs."

"You're right," Misty agreed. "I was actually kind of impressed when I first heard he was wanting to avoid attention, but now I think that he just doesn't like talking to reporters. When pretty girls or trainers start admiring him, he suddenly has no problem telling the world his identity."

"That's true," Brock nodded as he said this. "And the worst part of it all is that none of the girls are interested in talking to me!"

All day long, women had been coming up to Ash, obviously very impressed by his fame and notoriety, but every time Brock came near to introduce himself they suddenly sprinted off, not even giving him their names usually.

"Well, at least it looks like he's done now," Brock said, sounding relieved as he saw that the long line of trainers who had wanted to battle Ash had finally dissipated to nonexistence.

"Really?" Misty asked, her head popping up from its relaxed position. "Let's go get him in the car before more people come."

Running over to Ash, both Brock and Misty were happy to see that the coast appeared clear.

Maybe now we can get back on the road, Misty thought happily. The drive to Saffron City was going to take a few hours, and she didn't want to get there too late.

"Ash, you ready to go?" asked Brock as they approached their friend.

"Yep," he said, looking happy. "I got to train a lot of the new Pokémon I caught, and I must have signed at least a thousand autographs. I'd say my work here is done."

"Good, then hurry up and get to the car," Misty ordered. She was annoyed at how proud he sounded of himself.

You just beat a bunch of rookie trainers, she though. Whoop-de-doo.

"Wait a minute!" the group heard a young voice call from behind them as they began to walk towards the parking lot.

Turning around, Misty saw the young boy who had been refereeing the battles jump off the bench he had been standing on and run over to Ash.

"You promised if I refereed the battles that we could have our own six-on-six battle," he reminded the champion.

Smacking his head in remembrance, Ash looked apologetically at his friends.

"Uh, he's right guys. I'm sorry, but I did promise him that we'd have a battle."

"What?" Misty asked, growing angry again. "Ketchum, we've been watching you battle for six hours. We're not gonna sit and wait for you to finish up here."

"But guys, I promised," Ash said pleadingly.

"Fine, but I'm going. Whether you come or not is up to you." As she said this, she walked off in a huff towards the car.

"Hold up Mist," Brock said calmly. "I'm sure there's a happy medium we can reach here. Ash, how about this; Misty and I will go to that new mall that we passed by earlier and hang out. When you're done here, you go there and meet up with us."

"Sounds good to me!" Ash agreed, happy to resolve the conflict as painlessly as possible.

"Fine," Misty said, still sounding annoyed. "But you better hurry up Ash! We can't wait forever for you to finish showing off."

"What?" Ash asked, now sounding angry too.

"Nothing, nothing," Brock replied for the redhead as he pushed her towards the parking lot.

"Keep quiet!" he urged in a whisper to the girl as they went further away from Ash.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

A couple of hours later, Misty was feeling much better about their decision to stay in Vermillion and walk around the mall some. They had eaten some pizza at the food court, played a few games at the arcade, and had browsed through several stores while enjoying each other's company.

"So then we headed back here," Brock wrapped up. He had been updating Misty on Ash's travels with Dawn and himself as they worked their way through the jungle of sales and restaurants.

"Wow," Misty said, impressed. "A lot happened while I was gone. That Paul guy sounds like a jerk to me."

"Yeah, he was, but the odd thing is that his and Ash's rivalry was very different than the rivalry between Ash and Gary," Brock noted.

"How so?" she asked, mildly intrigued.

"Well, you remember how Ash and Gary were constantly at each other's throats growing up, right?"

"Oh yeah," Misty affirmed, almost laughing as she remembered all the different times the two overconfident trainers had clashed.

"Well, Ash was just different with Paul," Brock explained. "I mean, Paul was a much bigger jerk than Gary in my opinion, but Ash handled their rivalry with a lot more maturity than he had with Gary. Every time they would get into a fight about something, Ash would almost always try and reconcile, although Paul usually ignored him."

"That's odd," Misty said.

"I know, you'd think Paul would wanna make friends, not enemies."

"No, no," Misty replied, shaking her head. "I mean about Ash being mature. That sure doesn't sound like him to me."

"I don't blame you for sounding surprised, but it's true," Brock said. "It's weird because Ash is still a little overconfident and headstrong, but only when he's around you does he act as immature as he did when he was ten."

"Lucky me," Misty murmured.

"Yeah," Brock said, chuckling, "I guess when he's around you, it reminds him of when he was younger, so he just acts like he did back then. Of course, I don't see you acting much more mature around him either."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Misty asked, shooting daggers with her eyes as she looked at Brock. She had now come to a complete halt in the middle of the crowd moving throughout the mall, and Brock had to stop to face her.

"Uh, nothing, I-I didn't say anything," he said, waving his hands as if he hoped to wipe the memory of his statement away.

"I'll have you know that I'm very mature, Brock," Misty hissed as she poked the breeder on the chest. "It's just that Ash is an idiot, so I get flustered sometimes when I'm around him."

"Oh, okay," Brock said, easing away from Misty. He was glad to see that she had at least gotten a little less violent as she had grown older.

"Let's go out to the front of the mall and wait for Ash. He should be here pretty soon," she said, suddenly pivoting one hundred and eighty degrees on her left foot and walking towards the exit of the large shopping center.

Sure enough, several minutes later the two saw Ash approaching them, looking as if he had rolled around in a pile of dirt.

"What happened to you?" Brock asked, almost sounding horrified as he saw that Ash's clothes were not only dirty, but also ripped in several places. "Did you have a run-in with a serial killer or something?"

"No," Ash answered, laughing. "It was that battle I had with that kid. I think his name was Darion."

"How could you get this dirty from a Pokémon battle?" Misty inquired. She couldn't believe how darkly-tinted Ash's clothes were by the layers of dirt on top of them.

"Well, it turns out he wasn't just another kid wanting a Pokémon battle," Ash said. "He was actually one of the contenders in the Indigo League, and he was in the top eight of all competitors before he lost."

"Whoa!" Brock exclaimed. "He couldn't have been older than eleven."

"Well, I did pretty well in that tournament when I was eleven," Ash reminded him.

"Yeah, but you didn't make the final eight," Misty told him.

"Whatever," Ash said, casting aside the remark for the moment. "So anyway, he's getting ready to go to the Hoenn region to compete in their League, and he heard that I was in town. He said he wanted to battle me before he left tomorrow so he could improve, but I have to say it was more of a learning experience for me than it was for him."

"Whaddya mean?" Brock asked, now engrossed in the story.

"Well, you see, I thought he was just another rookie, so I didn't switch out any of the Pokémon I had for tougher ones using my pokedex. I just had two trained Pokémon, and then the ones I've caught over the past two weeks."

"No way!" Brock and Misty shouted in unison.

"Yep," Ash nodded, suddenly basking in the warmth of their interest. "So we started the battle and he sent out his Venasaur and I sent out my Horsea."

"That's not a good combination," Brock remarked.

"You're telling me," Ash murmured. "Within no more than thirty seconds, I had lost that battle."

"So what ended up happening?" asked Misty, curious. "Did he win?"

"Well, no, but he barely lost."

"How did you pull it off?" Brock queried.

"I just used all the Pokémon I had recently caught, you know, Horsea, Slowpoke, and Gyarados," Ash explained. "Believe it or not, I actually beat his Venasaur with Slowpoke's psychic attacks, and I took down two more with Gyarados. After he beat those, though, I had to use my trained Pokémon."

"Yeah, yeah," Misty said eagerly, wanting to move the details aside. "But how did you end up looking like this?" As she asked him, she indicated his messy clothes with a flourish of her hands.

"Oh yeah," he said, as if he'd forgotten why they had asked him about the battle to begin with. "Well, in the final battle, it was my Staraptor against his Starmie. I used Sand Attack to temporarily blind his Pokémon when-"

"Ash," Misty interrupted, closing her eyelids with her hand, "Starmie don't have eyes. How did you plan on blinding it?"

"Well, I didn't say I had come up with a great plan, did I?" Ash asked.

"No, I guess you didn't," Misty relented. "So all of this dirt on you; it's from that Sand Attack?"

"Yep," Ash answered. "But I won with a Brave Bird attack, so it all worked put for the best."

"Yeah, but how did your clothes end up ripped?" Brock inquired as he stared at the torn up t-shirt and jeans.

"Heh, actually," Ash began, rather sheepishly, "that happened when I tripped on a gravel path in the park on the way out."

Groaning, the two friends rolled their eyes simultaneously as Ash waited to hear what sarcastic comments would protrude from Misty's lips. However, what she said actually caught him off guard.

"I guess we better buy you some new clothes then," she said, in a tone that reminded Ash a lot of his mother.

"Say what?" he asked bewildered.

"You heard her," Brock said. "We need to get you some new clothes."

"What? But why?" the trainer asked in a whining voice.

"Why? Look at you!" Misty said, once again indicating Ash's clothes with a flourish of her hands. "We don't need people thinking your homeless."

"They already do when they see what we're driving in," Ash said under his breath.

"Shut up!" Misty commanded. However, her anger was quickly diverted when she heard a muffled laugh coming from behind her. She turned to see Brock holding a hand over his mouth.

"What, you think that was funny?" she snarled. She gave him a look that dared him to say anything other than "no".

"N-no. It's just that was pretty witty. Especially coming from Ash."

"Whatever, I'll deal with you later," she said, pointing at Ash. "But for now, we have to go get some clothes."

"Come on," Ash said. "We can just wash these ones."

"Ash, Misty's right," Brock interjected. "You're not twelve anymore. You have to look nice, and those clothes are beyond repair. Besides, we already promised your mom that we'd buy a new outfit for you once we were in Cerulean, and I completely forgot to do that when we were there. If she calls and sees you still wearing that ratty thing, then she'll have me hung."

"Oh, alright," Ash gave in. "But only because we promised Ma."

"That's more like it," Brock said, in a voice that agitated Ash. It sounded like something his father would say.

"C'mon guys!" Misty called. Ash was surprised to see she was already at the entrance, holding the doors open. "We've got some serious work to do!"

"Wow! She sure got over there fast," Ash remarked as he and Brock headed towards the building.

"Well Ash, there's one thing you should know about women," Brock told him in a lower voice as they got closer to the redhead.

"What?" Ash asked, wondering why his friend was getting quieter.

"Almost all girls love to shop, and Misty is definitely no exception to that rule."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So what do you think about this?" Misty asked Ash for the hundredth time that hour, holding up a pair of blue jeans.

"Looks exactly like the ones you had a minute ago, which looked fine," Ash replied, tired from standing there and looking at identical pieces of clothing.

"These are not the same kind," Misty stated, appearing disgusted by Ash's lack of knowledge. "These have pockets on the sides."

"I thought you were known as the 'Tom boy mermaid'," Ash said. "When did you suddenly become so girly?"

"I'm not girly!" Misty replied, hot-headedly. "I'm still kind of a tom boy. I just like to look nice, which wouldn't be a bad habit for you to pick up on, by the way."

"But I like how I look. Can't we just buy another hood jacket and jeans and get out of here?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "You're a Pokémon Champion now, and you have to look like it."

"What do you think a Champion looks like?" Ash asked, confused.

"Well, you know, like the Kanto Champion, Lance. He's always nicely dressed."

"Yeah, he's always wearing a suit and tie," Ash said, sticking out his tongue. "Mist, if you think I'm gonna dress up in a suit and cape while I try and catch every Pokémon, then you're crazy."

"I'm not saying that," Misty replied while rolling her eyes. "I'm just sayin' that you need to look a little more professional in your attire. You know, like maybe wear khaki jeans instead of blue ones. Also, we should probably get rid of that hat."

"What???!!!" Ash screamed, backing several feet away from Misty. "You touch my hat and I'll kill you."

"What's the big deal?" she asked.

"Are you kidding me? I've worn a hat since the beginning of my journey," Ash said in a voice which reminded Misty of a voice television characters used before having a flashback.

"Fine, but can we at least get rid of that orange one? Here, try this blue one instead." She handed him a navy-colored cap from a nearby rack.

"No way," Ash said, placing his hands on the hat covering his head. "I like this hat. Burnt orange is the color of a team I really like."

"Really?" Misty asked. She couldn't think of a sports team with burnt orange as its color. "Which team is it?"

"Oh, you wouldn't have heard of it," Ash said, obviously not wanting to talk about it.

Very odd, she thought to herself.

"Hey guys," Brock said, suddenly walking up behind Ash. "Look at what I found." He held up a plain, black polo shirt.

"Ew, Brock," Misty said, scrunching up her nose. "Can't you find something with a little more color in it?"

"Actually, I like it," Ash told the breeder. "If I'm gonna have to wear a nice shirt, I want it to be that one."

"Oh, fine," Misty said.

Why should I care anyway? she asked mentally.

"Now Brock, let's go find some good clothes," Ash said, grabbing his friends arm and walking towards a section of clothing that was labeled "outdoor wear" on a sign hanging from the ceiling.

"What are you talking about, Ash?" Misty asked him as he stopped in his tracks.

"Well, you can't expect me to always look nice," Ash explained. "So me and Brock are gonna look for some clothes that will be easier to wear in the outdoors when I have to be in forests or caves looking for Pokémon."

"I thought you were just gonna wear these clothes," Misty said, holding up the khaki jeans and polo.

"Why would I do that?" Ash inquired. "So I could impress an Ursaring before it tried to eat me?" As he said this, he and Brock both laughed and began to walk towards the outdoor section.

Sighing, Misty stood there for a moment, about to bring his clothes to the register when she suddenly realized something.

"Ash!" she yelled. "I'm not your servant. Get back here and take these stupid clothes now!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

As they walked out of the mall, Ash actually looked very pleased with himself.

"I can't wait to try out those new hiking shoes I bought," he announced as they approached the car.

"I know," Brock said, dipping his head down as he got in the backseat. "Those will definitely come in handy when you go to Mount Moon in a few weeks."

"Yeah, I know," he replied excitedly. As he got in the passenger seat, he began to close the door.

"Excuse me!" called a voice from behind the vehicle.

Turning around, Ash was surprised to see it was a young woman. As she approached the passenger-side door, he couldn't recognize who she was.

"Excuse me," she said again, blushing slightly. "I'm sorry, but my friends over there (she pointed to a group of girls who were also standing almost immediately behind the car) and I thought you struck an odd resemblance to Ash Ketchum. Is it really you?"

"Yeah, it's me," Ash replied, smiling. It wasn't the first time today he'd been recognized of course, but this was by far the prettiest woman to approach him. She had long brown hair that was pulled together in a ponytail, and had bangs that almost reached her eyes. She also had brown eyes, and seemed almost as tall as him, although he couldn't be positive from the position she had taken next to the car.

"Wow, okay," she said, suddenly looking as if she hadn't expected the reply. "Well-"

"Well nothing!" Brock suddenly yelled as he jumped out of the backseat and approached the young woman. "You're beautiful!"

"Why, um, thanks," she said, apparently less flattered than bewildered by the strange man who seemingly appeared from nowhere. "I, uh, I mean, you l-look nice too."

"Really?" he asked in a voice of unbelief.

She just said I was the most gorgeous thing she'd ever seen, he thought to himself. Better try and play it cool.

"Will you marry me?" he asked. As he did so, he dropped to his knees and took out a ring he kept in his jeans' pocket for such an occasion (which came about every few days).

"Uh, what?" she asked, thinking this was all some kind of weird joke.

"That's enough from you, lover-boy," Misty suddenly said, intervening in the affair by dragging Brock away by the ear.

"But don't you see?" he asked her as she opened the door and shoved him back into his seat. "She loves me!"

"No," Misty replied. "But she will love the judge who approves the restraining order for you if you don't cut this out."

"Sorry about that," Ash said, opening his door and getting out of the car so he didn't have to talk to the mysterious new girl at such an awkward angle.

"Oh, it's alright," she assured him as she began to blush again slightly.

"So did you need something, um-"

"Whitney," the girl told him.

"Right," Ash said, inwardly scolding himself for not asking of her name sooner. "Do you need something Whitney?"

"Oh, uh, no," she told him, beginning to walk away. "Just wanted to say 'hi'." However, as she returned to the group of girls she had apparently been hanging out with, they all started pushing her back towards Ash, and whispering to her in a harsh tone.

What's going on here? he asked to himself.

"Okay, okay," Whitney told her friends as she walked back towards the champion.

"Well, there was one thing I wanted to ask you," she confessed to Ash as she approached him once again. She gripped her right forearm tightly with her left hand as she appeared to struggle with her next sentence.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go to dinner sometime?" she asked hurriedly, as if thinking that the quicker it was said, the less painful it would be to ask.

Almost shocked, although not quite, Ash forced himself not to look too overjoyed as he heard her question.

"Sure," he replied coolly. "How about this evening?"

"Oh, uh, okay," Whitney replied, apparently repressing the joy in her wavering voice.

"Are you sure you'll be ready?" As she asked, she examined his torn up clothes and dirty face.

Laughing, Ash gave her a nod.

"Definitely," he said.

"Alright, where are you staying?" she asked.

"At Waltz's Inn and Suites," he informed her. "Is eight good for you?"

"Sure!" she replied, sounding giddier than she wanted. "I'll come pick you up then!"

"Sounds good to me," he told her. "Talk to you later."

"See ya!" she replied as she practically skipped back to her friends and began conversing with all of them simultaneously.

Climbing back in the car, Ash was instantly thrown off of his high horse as he saw both Brock and Misty glaring angrily at them.

"What's the matter?" he asked innocently.

"You stole my fiancé, that's the matter!" Brock accused as the car pulled out of the parking spot and they exited the mall premises.

"I did not Brock," Ash replied, sounding put out with Brock's obsession with women. "You didn't even know her name before I asked."

"Still," Brock said, much quieter now, "I could've sworn I felt a connection."

"What you felt were hormones," Misty corrected him as she drove towards the hotel.

"So what are you angry about?" Ash asked Misty, as he looked at the driver who had now shifted her angry glare from him to the road in front of them.

"I'm not angry!" she shot back, appearing taken aback when he asked her.

"Really?" he asked. "Because you certainly don't look like you're in a good mood."

"I'm not angry," she practically hissed at the young man, briefly staring him down before again focusing on the road.

"Oh, alrighty then," he responded, nervously twiddling his thumbs.

Note to self: stay away from Misty, he thought as they grew closer to Waltz's.

Author's Notes: I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter. This was a fun chapter to write from the perspective of trying to keep Misty kind of a tom-boy while also showing that she's matured over the past six years. Also, for any of you who may say that Ash wouldn't be interested in girls, or that he's too immature, I have to say that I disagree. I don't care how immature you are because a guy's a guy. If the girl is pretty (like I wrote Whitney as), then Ash is going to be attracted to her; it's only natural.

Anyway, in keeping with tradition, here's my recommendations:

"Closure" by Warlordess – Okay, I admit that I haven't looked for any new stories this week. Happy? However, this was one of the first fanfics I read (which was about eight months ago), and I have to say that to date it is one of the best pokeshipping stories I've seen on this site. If you get a chance, read it and its sequel "Possibilities".

Anyways, REVIEW PLEASE if you get the chance.

I also wanted to say that if anyone can point out the slightly obvious reference to the Texas Longhorns football team I kind of unnecessarily placed in this chapter to me, I will personally dedicate the next chapter to you. If there's more than one, then I'll dedicate it to all of y'all, however I'm not sure if you'll catch it or not.