Hey Everybody! Well, I know it's a week late, but here's chapter 30! I would like to share very quickly my story for why I was late, just so you know I haven't been simply slacking off. I graduated Thursday before last, and a lot of my family came out to visit and see the ceremony. So as I'm sure y'all can imagine, it was really difficult for me to find alone time to write between having fun with my family and going to parties with my graduating class. So yeah, I wasn't simply procrastinating on my writing, I just had a lot going on. However, I want to assure y'all that chapter 31 should be up on schedule in two weeks.
I'd also like to take this time to thank my readers really quick. Within 48 hours of submitting my last chapter, I received 40 reviews, and after a week I'd received 50! Thank all of y'all so much for your dedication to this story and for your insights. I must say that I received a ton of helpful advice and criticism to help improve this story and my style at large, and I also received more than my fair share of compliments. Thank you to everybody for giving me your thoughts, and I want to take this time to remind everyone who's reading this story that I'd love to get your feelings in the form of a review (which I will, of course, reply to). Not only do reviews help me become a better writer, but they also lend much-needed credibility to this fic. The more reviews a story has, the more likely people are to click on it while browsing (so I've been told), and of course, the more people that read this story, the more Pokéshippers we can create. I've already converted two Pearlshippers and one Advanceshipper (ha,ha), and I've had countless others tell me that though they support another ship, after taking time to read this fic, they now consider themselves part Pokéshippers as well.
Before you read the story, I'd also like to tell you that licoricejellybean helped me with a little of this story. Though we no longer beta for each other, she took time from her busy schedule to help me with the conversation between Dawn and Misty that you'll read later on in this installment. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't get it to sound good, so I owe my archrival a thank you.
Now go ahead and read and REVIEW!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any of its affiliated companies including, but not limited to, 4Kids, The Pokemon Company, Game Freaks, or Cartoon Network. The characters written within this fic are soley 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: 17
Brock: 21
Misty: 17
Dawn: 14
Delia: 40
Oak: 55
Paul: 14
"Hollow." The first thought to cross Dawn's mind as she and Ash stood in the center of the field, their lips firmly pressed together. She didn't know why such a word would intrude upon her at just this moment; in fact, she couldn't think of a less incompatible adjective for what was taking place. Yet, as the crowd continued to display their approval of the romantic interaction, she couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong. To ease her worries, she briefly opened her eyes.
Any enchantment the moment held was dispelled the second her eyelids fluttered apart. Her brief gaze was met immediately with Ash's wide, panic-stricken eyes. She pulled away, both petrified of the look he was giving her, and that perhaps someone else noticed how shaken he appeared.
"Um," she began, heat rushing to her face. As she looked around, she became grateful that the stadium was so noisy. "What's the matter, A-Ash?"
Ash continued to stand still for a moment, staring at a point just above the blue-haired coordinator's head.
"Uh, Ash?" she lightly tapped him on the shoulder.
With a jerk, he snapped his neck and looked down. "Oh, uh, hey Dawn!"
"What's the matter?"
"Yeah Ashy-boy," Gary said, sneaking up from behind the champion. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you'd just seen a ghost!" He started cracking up as Ash's facial appearance remained unchanged. "It's not your fault, Dawn. He's probably never even kissed a girl before!" A few people around Gary snickered as they heard his comment.
"N-no, it's not that!" Ash suddenly snapped, coming fully back to reality. Looking down at Dawn, he began to question what her intent was when a streak of red caught his peripheral vision. Looking to his right, he could barely make out Misty running through the crowd of his family and friends.
"Misty!"
"Ash, why are you acting so strange?" Dawn asked firmly, ignoring his cry. She was beginning to grow irked as she realized he'd ruined her perfect moment. "What's the matter with you?"
For a brief second her words caught the champion's attention. Looking down at the young woman, Ash had an almost uncontrollable urge to lash out angrily. He felt anger bubble within his veins as he thought of how far back she'd set his and Misty's relationship, and how now the young woman was acting frustrated with him.
How dare she-
Looking up though, he caught sight of Misty running through the exit of the battlefield, and all anger was forgotten.
"Let's talk later Dawn, okay?" he asked, giving her a slight push as he began to make his way through the large mass of bodies. Fortunately, he was taller than the vast majority of his acquaintances, so he was able to keep his bearings straight as he progressed.
"Good job man!"
"Way to go Ash!"
"I always knew you'd make it!"
The compliments shot overhead like bullets as he kept his focus strictly on the now-closed exit door.
This probably looks kinda weird, he noted as he continued to force himself out of his large circle of friends and family. From overhead, he was sure the audience wondered why he was so recklessly running away from everyone. He didn't care though. He needed to nip this conflict in the bud before Misty got too far away.
Finally, after a lot of work, he broke through the end of the human barrier and began to sprint. Even as his stomach clenched in pain, and his elbows screamed from the dirt which infested their open wounds, he continued his sprint. The doors slid open just in time as he ran through. Jerking his head in both directions, he worried that the redhead had gotten far away by that point. However, a small sob to his immediate left caught his attention.
There, on her knees and with her back to him, was Misty.
"Misty!" he cried out, startling the young woman and himself. His voice carried the same tone as that of a drowning man begging for a lifejacket.
Turning her head back, a bleary-eyed Misty shot him a dark glare before turning around.
"Misty, I'm so sorry-"
"Oh, shut up Ash!" she cried bitterly, hiccupping. "Just leave me alone and go make out with Dawn."
The words stung Ash unexpectedly. He hadn't anticipated Misty being mad at him, but rather at the blue-haired coordinator. "Why're you so upset with me? I didn't kiss her, you know."
"You didn't stop her though, did you? You just stood there looking like an idiot while she mashed her face into yours." Misty stuck out her tongue in disgust. "I should have figured that you two were doing something behind my back."
"Hold on a second!" Ash yelled, the ferocity in his voice catching Misty's gaze. He took a step toward her hunched figure before continuing. "There was nothing going on between us at all. This is the first time I even knew she had feelings for me! I can't believe that you'd even think I'd lie to you!"
"Well then why didn't you pull away?"
"I barely had time! She pulled away after only a second!"
Staring up at him angrily, Misty continued. "But I saw a weird look on your face Ash! It didn't look like you were having a bad time, either. I don't know what that look was, but it was definitely not disgust, or anger, or anything else that would have made me happy to see."
Sighing, Ash explained. "You're right, I wasn't angry-"
"So you admit you liked it then?"
"Of course not!" He was beginning to grow frustrated with her impatience. If only she'd hear him out. "I looked weird because I was…shocked."
That couldn't have been more ambiguous.
"What are you talking about?" Misty's temper began to swell as she gave more thought to Ash's answer. "I mean, okay, it's surprising that she kissed you. I get that. But just because you're surprised doesn't mean you don't end it. It's obvious you were enjoying yourself! I can't believe I wasted my first kiss on a guy like you!"
For a moment Ash simply stood there, dumbstruck. The sudden outrage which washed over him instantly gave Misty control of the conversation once more, and he felt the familiar sense of defeat that he'd experienced so many times at Misty's hands when they were younger. He also felt the familiar reaction to such an inevitable defeat arise within him.
"You just don't know what you're talking about."
"No, Ash!" She stood up as she screamed. "You don't know what you're talking about." Unlike when they were children, though, Misty did not wait for Ash to retaliate with a "yes I do". Instead she began a fast-paced march down the corridor of the stadium.
As he watched her walk away, he felt as if he were ripping in two. Half of him wanted to just watch her go away. After all, she is wrong.
However, in spite of his sense of self-righteousness, he couldn't deny the existence of the other half, screaming at him to go after her. He couldn't explain why, but suddenly being right seemed unimportant in comparison to her feelings. She thought I cheated on her. I mean, that's a good reason to get mad, right?
He knew he was in the right though. He'd never willingly given up a heated argument, and he'd especially never done so with Misty. Besides, how can you cheat on someone when they're not even really your girlfriend? After all, they'd never discussed their relationship. Can Misty just say I'm not allowed to kiss someone even though she has no power over me?
As she began to near the corner, though, the other half seemed to get louder. Are you really going to just let her leave? Do you remember how miserable you were the last time she left you?
And suddenly he felt his legs move beneath him. Against the will of his superego, his heart simply propelled him forward. Within a few seconds, he rounded the same corner and caught up to the gym leader. He reached out to grab her shoulder, to which Misty instinctively reacted by taking a step backward and landing on his right foot.
"Ow!" he cried as she continued on, acting as if she hadn't known he was there. However, he wasn't going to give up. He wasn't going to go without Misty again. He ran after her, but this time passed her and held his arms wide as he planted his feet firmly to the ground.
Giving him a dark glare, Misty warned him to move.
"Not until you hear what I have to say." Ash couldn't help but gulp a little when he saw Misty's eyes almost pop out of her head as he ignored her command. To his relief though, she did little more as she awaited his explanation.
"I was surprised when Dawn kissed me, okay? I mean, I don't know why I didn't move immediately after she did it, or why I didn't make a weirder face, but I do remember I was just so shocked by how different it felt from how it does when we do it." He couldn't help but feel slightly effeminate going into such detail with the redhead, but as he saw her face contort from anger to curiosity, he pressed himself to continue.
"I mean, when we, you know, it-it just feels a lot, uh, I dunno, better?" Though her features softened considerably as he went on, he could still see the hurt in her eyes.
Keep going, he ordered. Sharing feelings was not enjoyable at all, but at least it was melting her heart a little. Above, he heard the announcer ask why he'd left on the speakers.
"I-I'd never wanna kiss another, um, girl, Mist." Though his voice wavered, he did his best to sound as serious as possible. Looking into her eyes, he could still see some hesitance in the beautiful young woman as she stared at the ground for a moment, biting her lip.
She must've really been hurt.
"Is it true, that, uh, you n-never kissed anyone else before?"
Scolding herself for opening up to him like that, Misty gave a slight nod.
"Well, um, it was my first time too," Ash informed. "To kiss, I mean."
With that, and his face as red as his counterpart's, he reached out and lightly placed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up slightly, and slowly stepped closer to him. Seemingly accepting his explanation, she wrapped her arms around him in a strong hug. Ash reciprocated and for a moment the two stood in the hallway, silent.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"Where'd Ash go?" Gary asked as several reporters now flooded the battlefield, wishing to speak to the victor.
"Uh, I'm not sure," Dawn replied honestly. She'd been scouring the crowd relentlessly as she tried to find the object of her affections A few minutes had passed since their odd interaction though, and she'd yet to find where he'd run off to. "I'll go find him."
Taking off in the same direction as she last watched him go, she thought of what she would say.
I can't believe you'd just run away after our first kiss! How could you be so selfish? She'd demand that he apologize for how he'd acted in front of everyone, and then she'd forgive him and everything would be perfect.
Yes, that's what I'll do.
However as she continued to shove through the waves of people, she began to grow a little worried. What if he ran off because he's mad at me? After all, Gary did say it was his first kiss. Maybe I embarrassed him! I should be the one who apologizes. Coming to the conclusion that their future marriage was well worth a humbling apology, she found herself now on the outside of the large bubble of people.
Scanning the field, she assumed he must have gone through the exit since no one in the battlefield seemed to know his whereabouts. Briskly jogging through the doors, she was surprised to hear distant chatter to the left. Deciding to investigate, she snuck down the hall. As she got closer to the end of the corridor, even more to her shock, the voices became more clear and familiar. They were Ash and Misty's.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"I am sorry, Mist," Ash repeated as he rested his chin on top of her head. It was as if they were built for each other with how well they fit together hugging. "I would never do anything to make you upset like that, you know."
"I know Ash."
A cough from behind suddenly caught both teenagers' attention. Turning around, Ash saw Dawn glaring at him angrily, her arms folded. "What are you doing?" Taking purposeful steps towards the couple, Ash separated from Misty and prepared for the assault of his angry aficionada. He saw an anger in her eyes that he rarely ever beheld, and he began to wonder if it was possible to spontaneously combust from having someone stare so angrily at you.
However, to his surprise, she didn't stop when she came to him, but instead continued walking until she was right in front of Misty's face.
Uh-oh.
"How could you do this to me? You knew I liked him, but you just couldn't keep your hands off him, could you? What's next? Are you gonna go out with Brock just in case I ever develop feelings for him too? I can't believe you're being so selfish! You had your chance years ago and you never took it, and now that I have a chance you just waltz in here and take him away from me!" The rant continued for another minute, but Ash quickly realized that she seemed to be repeating herself as she progressively accused and badgered his redheaded friend. What worried him much more than Dawn's outrage anyway was Misty's reaction. As she continued to take abuse from the younger woman, he could see her cheeks growing red-hot, waiting to explode.
"Uh, Dawn."
"Don't even start talking to me Ash!" Dawn warned, turning around so quickly the wind almost blew Ash off his feet. Pointing an accusatory finger at him, the coordinator promised to "deal" with him in a moment.
You don't have a moment.
"How dare you!" Misty suddenly yelled as Dawn turned back to face her. "You have no right to barge in here and start screaming at me and Ash like that! How dare I like Ash? How dare you come in here acting like you know what you're talking about! We kissed before he left for his training camp, and then again right before his battle! I'm the one who convinced him to use Pikachu, and I'm the one who he likes. Not you!"
Ash winced as he waited for Dawn's reply. He didn't like seeing his friends fight like this, and he especially didn't enjoy being the reason for such a melee.
Instead of indulging in another long-winded rant, however, Dawn stood still for a moment before turning back around. Facing the raven-haired champion she asked, "Is it true?" Tears began to well in her eyes as her voice broke.
He almost asked her what part she needed him to verify, but he was well-aware of what she wanted to know. With a slow nod, he responded, "Yeah, it is."
Another moment of silence.
"Well then," Dawn replied, wiping away a tear furiously with the back of her palm, "I hope you two have a great time together." With that, she began sprinting down the hallway past Misty, and Ash instinctively made to go after her.
"No," Misty said, grabbing his collar and pulling him back. "You can't go after her."
"But Misty! Just because you two are fighting doesn't mean she isn't still my friend!"
"It's not that." Misty rolled her eyes at his dramatic response. "Give her a little while to calm down. If you go after her now, you'll just be giving her false hope that maybe you like her. She needs to be alone for a little while and then we'll both go and see her." As angry as Misty had been, and was, with how Dawn had reacted to the news, she didn't like watching her embarrassedly run off either, and she couldn't deny the twinge of guilt which lurked in her stomach for making such a nice girl cry. Despite their shared desire for Ash's affection, they had been friends.
"Mr. Ketchum!" Another voice came from behind the pair as they watched Dawn turn another corner and run out of sight. Turning around, Ash and Misty were immediately flooded by reporters and cameramen, all wanting to speak to the young man.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"What a day, huh buddy?" Ash asked his yellow friend as the two walked into their luxury suite at the Anthony Deluxe Resort. It was hard for him to believe that less than a year ago he had walked into the same room, having just been declared the new Sinnoh Champion. After such extensive travel over the last ten months, his victory over Cynthia felt like a distant memory.
"Pikachu!" With a happy plop the electric mouse landed on top of the plush mattress. After being treated in the stadium's Pokémon Center, the spry Pokémon appeared healthy as ever. Unfortunately for Ash, the rest of his Pokémon needed to spend the night for recovery, but he intended to go get them back first thing in the morning.
"You were amazing out there Pikachu." Ash had already informed his Pokémon of this several times before, but he couldn't help the swell of pride he experienced every time he looked at his friend.
"Pika-pikachu," the creature replied nonchalantly. He scratched his right ear with his hind leg before laying down and closing his eyes.
Looking at the clock, Ash was amazed to see it was well past midnight.
No wonder he's so tired.
Realizing how exhausted he himself was, he stretched while yawning before slowly trudging over to the comfortable bed. Noting the sheer silence of the room, he smiled at his intelligence. Though he'd obviously been given the option to sleep with his friends and family back at the League house, he'd chosen to spend the night back here, in the Champion's Suite, because he knew he'd get no sleep with Dawn in the room right next to his, and with Misty no doubt on the alert for any interaction the two might have. It would have been much too tense to relax.
As he pulled down the thick violet comforter, a large yellow envelope on his pillow caught his eye.
"What's this?"
Picking up the parcel, he examined the front of the paper container to find his name neatly scribbled across the front in bold, cursive lettering. Ripping off the top, curiosity piqued at the strange object, he peered inside to find a single sheet of paper and a pokéball.
Ash,
If you want to follow in my footsteps, then you have a long way to go. However, maybe this will help just a little. Remember to only use it when you know the time is right.
-The Master
Immediately, Ash threw the letter to the side as he plunged his hand deep into the cavernous envelope, retrieving the pokéball he'd seen moments earlier. As he pulled it out, he was surprised to find that it was not colored like any of his previously-owned capturing capsules. While the bottom half remained white, the top was colored in a distinctive violet, with two small magenta circles on opposite sides of the letter "M" placed directly above the center button.
"No way."
"Pikachu?" The small Pokémon made his way over to his master as he heard Ash's audible gasp. Staring at the odd orb within his grasp, the electric mouse turned his head to the side in confusion. "Pikachu-pika?"
"This is a Master Ball!" Ash explained, certain that was what Pikachu wished to know. "It's the rarest kind of pokéball they make!"
"Pika-pika!" Suddenly Pikachu remembered the object. He and his friend had seen an old man unsuccessfully use one on a Whiscash years earlier.
Enlarging it, he gazed upon the sphere admiringly. He's right, I'll definitely have to use this carefully. He remembered the old man as well, and how he'd lost his prized pokéball after it was eaten by the large fish Pokémon.
"But wait, who wrote this?" Though only Pikachu was with him, he still asked the question aloud as he picked up the letter once more. Glazing over the paragraph, he quickly moved to the end. "'The Master', huh? I wonder which one it was?"
Though there was only one active Master ever, the title was lifelong, so even if you lost your throne to a challenger, you were always considered to be the "Master of Pokémon". At the present, there were only three Masters still alive, and after realizing that the two non-active ones were well over seventy years old, he came to the conclusion that only the active one would actually come all this way to give him a present.
Smiling to himself, Ash shrunk the ball and placed it on the small nightstand.
I'm a lot closer to your title than you think.
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"Ash, you're here!" Delia cried happily as the champion walked through the doorway, Pikachu on his shoulder. It seemed that everyone was once again crammed in the kitchen as his mother prepared breakfast.
"Oh goody, Mr. Sinnoh Champ finally decided to show up," Gary remarked snidely, paper plate loosely held at his side. "Now can we please have some of your delicious pancakes Ms. Ketchum? I'm about to die of starvation over here!"
"Now be patient Gary," Professor Oak said, clenching another plate. "It's not your place to scold Ash."
"Well it is mine," Misty growled, scaring Ash as she appeared from behind the throng of people. Marching over to the young man, she grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him into the kitchen. "You kept us waiting forever since your mom, who's annoyed too by the way, said it would be rude of us to eat without you. But you know what's even ruder? Keeping us waiting till eleven in the morning for breakfast!"
"Sorry, Mist," Ash replied sheepishly, finally getting to speak. "Sorry to all you guys, but I completely forgot that you guys were here."
"Well where did you think we were?"
"Uh, I dunno," Ash answered, embarrassed. The truth was that he'd overslept, having forgotten to set his alarm clock, but the last thing he wished to do was admit to that. Instead, he apologized again, causing the room to break into a general murmur of forgiveness before dividing into several conversations once again. Appearing satisfied that they'd accepted his apology, he happily grabbed a plate on the counter and walking to his mom.
"Can I have some? They smell delicious!"
Delia shook her head. "You kept everyone waiting, so now you have to get yours last Ash."
"But Ma-!"
"No buts, Ash. Besides, you can use this time to go and talk to Dawn."
"Talk to Dawn?" His voice lowered to a whisper, afraid that someone heard his mother.
"That's right. You need to explain to that poor girl that you're not interested in a relationship with her." Delia poured some more batter onto the pan as Professor Oak scooped up several cooled pancakes beside her and placed them on his plate.
Blushing, Ash asked how she knew about this.
"A mother always knows these things," she explained. "Now go talk to her, and when you come back down you can have something to eat."
"Alright," Ash consented. His appetite had diminished after remembering the coordinator anyway.
"Pikachu, pikachu, pika-pika." In one foul swoop, his "loyal" partner jumped from his shoulder and snatched the paper plate from his grasp between his small teeth. Once on the ground, he turned around and headed back to Delia.
Thanks pal.
Walking out the kitchen and beginning to make his way up the stairs, he suddenly felt a tug on his shoulder.
"You gonna talk to her too now?"
"Yeah, I tried to earlier today, but she's refusing to come out of her room." Misty explained. "I guess she's still really upset about what happened."
"I guess so." Ash felt sad as he remembered the blue-haired girl run away the day before. "I wish it didn't have to be like this for her."
"I know, me either," Mist replied, sounding equally depressed. Now that she'd had more time, even the rage she'd felt yesterday had evaporated, leaving nothing but grief in its stead. "I mean, I obviously didn't want her to like you, but I still wish her heart didn't have to be broken."
Ash silently nodded, and the two slowly made their way up the stairs. Once they reached the landing they continued until they reached the coordinator's door. Apprehensively, Ash knocked.
"Dawn, are you in there?"
Silence.
"Dawn, please let me come in for a second."
"Is Misty with you?"
"Uh…yeah?"
"No."
"But Dawn, we just wanna talk with you for a second," Misty replied. "Please, just let us in for just two minutes and then you can throw us out if you want. I promise."
"I said no!"
"Well I guess we'll just have to stay here until you come out," Misty concluded briskly, settling against the wall by Dawn's door. "You can't avoid us forever, Dawn. One way or another, we're going to talk about this."
There was another pause, before the lock in the door clicked reluctantly and the door swung slowly inward. Dawn didn't say a word as she stiffly jerked the door further open, allowing Ash and Misty to enter.
"Uh, nice place you got here," Ash commented as he and Misty took a seat on the twin-size bed in the far corner of her room. "Very, um, pink." He wasn't far wrong; the walls, carpet and furniture all looked like they'd been caught in an explosion in a cotton candy factory.
Please shut up, Ash, Misty begged mentally, as if he could somehow read her thoughts.
Unfortunately for the gym leader, the young champion was no psychic. "My room at the hotel last night wasn't this nice, I don't think. I mean, yeah, it had a bed and everything, and it also had a really nice television and a stocked refrigerator, but…um, uh, it didn't have a-a small bed!"
Ash, please, I'm begging you.
"Yeah, I had one of those huge, soft beds. I like smaller beds better though. I mean, sure, big beds are comfortable and everything, but-"
Misty subtly kicked him in the shin. "Shut your mouth, or Gyarados'll shut it for you," she hissed.
"Okay, okay," Ash replied grumpily, trying to surreptitiously rub the bruise he was sure was now blooming somewhere beneath his knee.
Misty turned her attention to the room's other occupant, who was perched stiffly on the edge of a fluffy fuchsia chair, staring down at her hands.
'Er…Dawn,' she began awkwardly, wishing that the silent young Coordinator would at least look at her, "I just want you to know that, um, well, that…"
"Now who needs to shut their mouth?" Ash cut in with a smirk. Misty shot him her trademark glare; Ash shut up instantly.
Misty cleared her throat. "Dawn, I know how difficult this must be for you." She suppressed a shudder, a vivid memory of how she'd felt watching Dawn and Ash kiss flashing through her brain. "But we're here because we're your friends, and just because things didn't work out…as you'd planned them, it doesn't mean that we can't go on being friends. Ash and I might be together now, but we still care just as much about you. We just want you to be happy."
Dawn's chilly blue eyes flashed as she raised her head.
"Oh, gee, thanks Misty," she snapped bitterly. "Now I feel a lot better."
Ash's eyebrows flew up. "Wow! That was easy!" he said happily as he made to stand up, but Misty grabbed him by the arm and forced him to stay down.
"She was being sarcastic, moron."
"See?" Dawn exploded, leaping to her feet. "How can you like someone who talks to you like that, Ash?" She pointed a dramatic finger at Misty. "All you've ever told me about her is how mean and horrible she is to you. I treat you so much better! How could you choose someone who calls you a moron over someone like me?"
Ash scratched his head. "Er…she has a point there, Misty."
"What?" Misty exclaimed in horror.
"No, not that," Ash interrupted her impatiently. "I mean, she has a point in wanting to know why I like you and not her. There is a reason, Dawn,' he added, turning to his younger traveling companion.
"Then what is it?" Dawn demanded. Her face was already flushed with despair as she awaited his response. There was no way this conversation would end with her winning him back.
"Um, I guess it's that she's a better motivator."
"What does that even mean?"
"I mean that, well, she's always there cheering me on and trying to make me a better trainer and person. She's been like that since I first met her, and she's kind of a big reason for why I've made it so far as a trainer." He blushed a little as he looked straight ahead at Dawn. Despite his line of vision, he could feel Misty's gaze upon him.
"So that's it? She cheers you on?" Dawn cried. "So do I! I even wore a cheerleader outfit for some of your battles! I doubt she ever did that!"
Misty frowned. "You wore a cheerleader outfit for him? When?"
"It was a long time ago," Ash assured the gym leader. The last thing he needed was more conflict between the young women. "And anyway, that's not what I was talking about Dawn."
"Then what were you talking about?"
"I mean, she cheered for me, but that wasn't all." He instinctively turned his head to the right slightly so he wouldn't have to watch the redhead in his peripheral as he spoke. "She also yelled at me a lot, and she always reminded me that I needed to stay, um, I guess the best word would be humble. She never let my ego get too big, and even after she left my group, I would always remember the lessons she taught me. Sometimes I still act really arrogant though."
Big word for Ash, Misty silently noted as she listened on. She herself felt a blush appear on her lily-white cheeks as he explained her prominence in his life.
"But the truth is, after travelling with Misty, I became a lot less big-headed and a lot more realistic. I trained harder because she had always bugged me to when we were younger, and I stopped taking great friends for granted. In fact, if it weren't for Mist, I probably would never have gotten to know you, Dawn."
"And how's that?"
"Misty was kinda a pain at first to bring with me on my journey-"
"Hey!" This was the second time he'd insulted her within five minutes.
"Sorry Mist, but it's true, and you know it."
"Well maybe if you hadn't destroyed my bike, then I wouldn't have been such a 'pain'! The only reason I was mean to you was because I knew there was no way I'd get you to pay for it unless I constantly reminded you. I'm a really nice person, you just aren't very smart."
Ash rolled his eyes, resisting the urge to smile; it still amazed him, how he could like a girl so much when she spent so much of her time telling him he was stupid. "Anyway, I didn't plan on having anyone other than my Pokémon with me on my adventures, but after Misty joined, I realized how much fun it was to have people with you," Ash continued. "Growing up, I'd always dreamed about going out and being with Pokémon as I became the Master. But Misty, and Brock, taught me that friendships with people are just as important and fun as with Pokémon. If she hadn't followed me after the accident with her bike, then I'd never have learned the importance of having human friends."
Dawn sagged back down into her chair, gazing at the bright fabric. "Okay, I get it," she replied dully. She had no wish to listen to Ash trumpeting any more of Misty's virtues, and it was clear he wasn't going to change his mind.
"But that doesn't mean I want our friendship to end, Dawn."
When she didn't respond, Misty continued for him.
"Dawn, what's important here is that we all stay friends – especially you and Ash. I understand that you're angry at me, but the last thing I would ever want to do is break up a great couple of friends like you two. He talked to me about you all the time when he called and when he wrote he would always say how great a coordinator you were. The truth is, I was jealous because of how much he'd talk about you, but I was also impressed because he saw so much potential in your skill. You've become a great coordinator, and he's become a better trainer, and you two did it together." The words burned in Misty's mouth as she said them, but she knew it was true.
Dawn averted her eyes to the ceiling. "I guess…" she mumbled reluctantly. She buried her face in her hands. "I can't believe we kissed in front of all those people."
"I know," Ash agreed. "It was all over the front pages this morning. It was even bigger news than me beating Paul!"
"It is?"
"Yep." Ash nodded to Misty. "I'm surprised everyone here hasn't made a bigger deal out of it, actually."
"Well, I kind of explained our situation to your mom last night, and I think she told everyone else."
"So that's how she knew." Pride swelled in his heart as he gained one up on his mother. "I knew she couldn't read minds."
Dawn had had enough. She got jerkily to her feet and marched over to the door, snapping it open. "If you two wouldn't mind, I'd like to be alone for a little while."
"You're still mad?" Ash asked, startled.
"I don't know what I am right now," Dawn snapped tersely. "I'm tired after not sleeping all night, I'm hungry from not eating since yesterday's breakfast, and I'm mad that I haven't gotten to brush my hair since I left my brush in the bathroom down the hall. So honestly, now would be a good time for you both to leave. I just need to think about this."
"We understand," Misty replied hastily, standing up and heading to the door. "Don't we Ash?"
"Yeah, I get it," he answered, following Misty's lead. "I hope we can get over this though, Dawn."
"I hope so too, Ash."
Dawn closed the door quietly in Ash and Misty's faces, and they turned and walked back down the stairs together.
"Do you think she'll wanna stay friends?" Ash asked, unsatisfied with the ambiguous ending to their conversation with the blue-haired teenager.
"Oh, I think she wants to – it's just whether she'll be able to. A broken heart's not something you get over easily. But Dawn's tough. I think she'll get over it, eventually. Maybe now that we've talked to her, she'll be able to decide what to do next."
As they reached the bottom of the staircase, Ash suddenly remembered his appetite. "Now let's get some pancakes!"
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"Misty, your sisters wanna talk to you!" Tracey called from the living room as the redhead happily inhaled her breakfast.
"Off cous," she mumbled, pancake crumbs falling out of her mouth. Ash began to crack up at the sight.
"Don't talk with your mouth full Mist!"
"Shud up," she muttered, downing a glass of orange juice to swallow the remains of her delicious meal. Taking a big breath after getting it all down, she continued. "I've seen you eat way worse than that!"
"Yeah, but I'm not supposed to be a lady," he replied, still laughing.
"It wouldn't hurt to try being a gentleman though." She slapped him on the back of the head as she walked out to talk with her sisters.
"Hey!"
"You deserved it."
As she approached the phone, she was surprised to see Tracey standing there with the phone in his hand.
"She, uh, said that she wants to talk to you privately," he explained. "I'll be in the other room, but could you tell her I said I'm sorry?"
"Sure Tracey," Misty answered, wondering what had happened. Taking the receiver from his hands, she pressed the cool plastic against her ear as she sat down on the small wooden stool in front of the screen. "Hey Daisy, what's going on?"
"Like, first, is that weird-o out of the room?" the blond asked, appearing quite angry.
"Uh, Tracey? Yeah."
"Good." She huffed and swatted some hair from the front of her face. "That creep had the nerve to ask me how I was, like, doing."
"He asked how you were doing?" Misty asked in disbelief. "That's why you're so angry with him?"
"Like, yeah! Can you believe the nerve?"
"Um, no, I can't."
"Well, like, anyway, I didn't call to talk about him anyway. I wanted to call and ask when you're, like, coming back home."
"Coming back home?" she repeated, confused. "What are you talking about? You guys better not be taking another world cruise, or else I'll-"
"No, of course not," Daisy interrupted, stopping the redhead mid-threat. "I mean, we watched the whole kissing thing between Ash and that blue haired kid. What was her name again? Dusk?"
"Dawn," she answered, rolling her eyes. "And that kiss didn't mean anything. She kissed him, but he didn't want her to or anything. She just thought that by kissing him first that she'd get the upper hand or something."
"Well, like, did she?" Daisy asked leaning into the video with rapt interest.
"Didn't I just say it didn't? Ash didn't want her to kiss him."
"So does this mean he likes you, or just that he doesn't like that coordinator kid?"
Misty's eyes widened involuntarily as realization dawned upon her. She remembered that her sisters had never been informed of the "progress" in her and Ash's relationship. "I think he definitely likes me Daisy. As a matter of fact, I know he does."
"How can you be so sure?" her sister questioned, her eyebrow raised. "Just because he messes with you like when you were kids doesn't mean he likes you. I wish you'd just take my advice and be more direct with your feelings. Like I said a few weeks ago, there's no need to scare him off, but you could let on that you might like him so he starts to think about it, or-"
"You mean like kissing him?" Misty interjected, a smile on her lips.
"Well, uh, no! I don't think anything that blunt would work."
"Really? Because it did for me."
"You kissed him?" Daisy shrieked. Seconds later, Misty saw her other two siblings, dripping wet, gather around the gym phone.
"Like, who did you kiss Mist?"
"Yeah, what's happening?"
"She kissed her champion guy!" Daisy explained, her voice still shrill. "And I guess he didn't mind, huh?"
"Nope," Misty replied, rather proud despite herself. She'd always hated girls who seemed to get joy from having a guy like them, but she was starting to understand the pleasure attained from such an accomplishment. "We've kissed a few times now, in fact."
"Like, no way!" Lily and Violet squealed together.
"So does this mean you two are, like, a couple now?" Daisy asked, pressing for more information. "Is he your boyfriend?"
"Uh, I don't really know." She blushed slightly as she watched the celebration on the other side begin to die down.
"You mean you two have kissed and you haven't even, like, discussed what your future is?" Lily asked, sounding shocked.
"I thought you were supposed to be, like, the good sister or something," Violet added.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Misty asked in a half-yell. All three of her siblings flinched as they heard her voice rise an octave.
Gulping, Daisy took control of the situation once again. "Uh, I think she just meant that it's not smart to just start making out with a guy before deciding where you're relationship is, like, going. You know? You don't just wanna give him what he wants with the chance that he'll just throw you aside when he finds someone better."
"Ash would never be like that!" Misty replied in a gasp. "I can't believe you'd think someone as honest and kind as him would even think about using me like that!"
"Well, don't get upset at us," Violet retorted. "We've all known 'honest' guys before, but the problem is that they're still guys. No matter how honest they are, they're still not gonna try and become your boyfriend if you're making out with them and basically giving them no rules. Any guy would love to be in that situation, because it means that once he finds some other girl he thinks is pretty, then he can just tell you that you guys were never serious anyway and he likes her better."
"It's, like, true Misty," Lily agreed. "You have to get him to be your boyfriend. Once he, like, has that title, then it's a lot harder for him to just run off. He knows that you're serious about the relationship, so like, he will be too."
"But what if he doesn't wanna be my boyfriend?" Misty asked in a hushed voice, turning around, worried that someone would hear how girly she sounded. "What if he says he just likes things the way they are?"
"Then you don't need to be hanging out with him anyway," Daisy replied simply. "If he doesn't wanna commit, then he doesn't realize what a good catch you are."
I guess all those magazines they read are finally coming in handy.
"Well then, I guess I better talk to him soon."
"That's right!"
"Without a doubt!"
"Like, definitely!"
Misty suddenly felt grateful for having her sisters call her. Though she always considered herself the black sheep of the family, as she'd grown older she'd come to appreciate the unique skill set her ditzy, and oftentimes annoying, siblings seemed to possess on the subject of love.
With a smile, she decided to carry on the conversation a little while longer. "So how's the gym doing?"
-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-
"So how are you enjoying your Champion Breakfast, honey?" Delia asked as she approached her son.
As he inhaled another five stack, he mumbled "uh wot".
Beaming , she continued. "Ash, would you come into my bedroom for a second? We need to talk about something."
Gulping down the remainder of his second course, he cringed slightly. She used the same tone when he was younger and she was about to break bad news to him. "Uh, sure, I guess." With a shrug, he walked out the hallway and to his mother's lush bedroom.
Hers is way bigger than mine was, he noted, silently wondering how she could achieve such a feat when he was the champion. Although, he realized, I would've given her the bigger room anyway.
"Sit down for a second, dear." Delia gestured to the empty space of mattress next to her.
Taking a seat by his mother, the memories flooded back to him. His mom would call him into her bedroom only when she had something very important to discuss with him.
What could she wanna talk about?
"I think you already know why I want to speak with you," she began in a loving, yet firm manner.
"Uh, no, not really."
Rolling her eyes, she sat up straighter. "I want to talk with you about what's going on between you and Misty for a minute, dear."
"Oh…alright." Ash gulped, and felt a small shudder make its way up his spine. Talking about women with his mother was certainly among the top ten most uncomfortable scenarios he could imagine himself in. The last time they'd discussed the fairer sex, he was twelve, and she was talking more about certain activities one could partake in with women, rather than any particular person. He couldn't imagine that discussing his and Misty's feelings would be much easier.
"So she told me that you two have kissed." It was rather a blunt start to such a fragile subject, but Ash realized this was probably not the easiest topic for his mother to bring up. "Is that true?"
"Yeah, we did." It was odd, but he almost felt guilty as he admitted to his and Misty's small rendezvous. Though they'd done nothing wrong, his mother's tone seemed almost accusatory in nature.
Delia cleared her throat before continuing. "Well, i-is that all you've, um, that you've done?"
"Whaddya mean?" Ash squinted at his mother, trying to discern her question.
Well, we've travelled a lot together, and she's caught me a bunch of Pokémon recently.
"Ash, do you remember the talk we had with the puppets and the videos, and Professor Oak came over to talk with you after I became too embarrassed to keep going?"
Eyes wide, Ash shook his head violently. "No! We haven't done anything like that! I promise!"
Relief seemed to wash over his poor mother as she breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness. I was worried that, well, you know, with you two out there on your own that you might start to get a little-"
"We didn't do anything Ma!" Ash covered his ears as he loudly repeated his small mantra. Though the idea was not unfavorable, talking to his mother about it certainly was.
"Okay, okay," she replied, now smiling. She forced his hands away from his ears. "Well that is certainly good news. You remember you're supposed to wait until you're married to do something like that, right?"
"I remember Ma," Ash replied, exasperated. He was desperate to get off of this subject. "So you're not mad about me and Dawn not being in a, uh, relationship, then?"
"What? Of course not! In fact, I'm kind of excited for you and Misty."
A discerning eyebrow raised as Ash made sure he'd heard correctly.
"Well of course I'm excited!" she answered. "I remember when you two were just little kids with Brock there to watch over you. You always had a crush on each other, it was so obvious, but I rarely mentioned it because you'd get so frazzled when I would."
"So why didn't you say something when Misty stopped travelling with me?"
"Well, first, it wasn't my place to do so, and second, you were too young. You were only barely twelve when you left for Hoenn! Besides, I already knew that it would work itself out."
"How'd you know that?" Curiosity tainted his voice. "For all you know, me and Misty might have never talked to each other again, and I'd have May for a girlfriend or something."
"I knew it would work out because love always finds a way," she answered in a sagely tone.
Sticking his tongue out, Ash made a sound of disgust. "You sound like one of those people in those corny love movies you used to make me watch when I was growing up."
Delia gave a snicker at his comment.
"And besides, who said anything about love? I mean, yeah, I like her a lot, but I'm not sure it's big enough to be called 'love' yet."
"Are you saying you don't love her then?" Delia asked, eyebrows raised as she smirked at her son.
"Uh, well, no! I mean, um- I mean that I like her a lot, and I've never really felt like this with another girl before, but love is kinda scary, isn't it? I mean, that's what people say when they get old and wanna get married or something. Me and Mist are just, I dunno, still being friends, but kissing now."
Laughing, his mom ruffled his uncapped hair. "You sound like almost every man I've ever know; afraid to admit your real feelings. Love isn't just for old people. It's for whoever feels it! And as for you and Misty, I think you two should certainly discuss your relationship soon."
"What? Why?"
"You just said it yourself. You're just making out right now and not discussing the future at all."
"What's wrong with just kissing?" Frankly, it struck Ash as the best part of any intimate relationship anyway. "I mean, it's not like she's gonna start dating someone."
"But she might Ash," Delia responded. She felt proud as she realized she was giving her son advice about women. "Trust me. A girl will only swoon over you for so long before she'll begin to wonder if you're serious. If you don't start treating her like your girlfriend soon, she might think you're not serious and lose interest. Girls aren't like boys. They need more than just kissing to keep themselves satisfied. They need to know they're cared about."
"I do care about her!"
"Then show her. Take her on a date to a nice restaurant. Give her flowers. When you two get a little further along, buy her jewelry."
Sighing, Ash's shoulders sagged. "That sound like a lot of work and money."
"It is, but I read in one of those Pokémon League magazines the average salary for a Sinnoh Champion. I'm sure you can more than afford it. Oh, and by the way, I wouldn't mind some jewelry for Mother's Day either." She laughed a little as Ash rolled his eyes. It was nice to be able to talk to her son like the young adult he'd become.
They talked for a while about lighter subjects before stumbling upon another important topic; Ash's "diploma" which he'd received in the mail from the Kanto School System.
"I know it's selfish, but sometimes I still wish you'd waited to go on your journey until after you graduated," Delia informed her son with a small sigh.
Ash gave a small nod. "Sometimes I wish I had too. I mean, it would have been pretty cool to go up on stage and get that diploma from a principal or someone rather than just get it in the mail like it's no big deal."
"Are you saying you regret leaving home so early?" Delia was shocked by the small confession. He normally instantly disregarded her wishes for him to have stayed through school.
"No, of course not!" Ash shook his head violently. "I mean, there are some times, like now, when I wish I could've
had a more normal life. But then I remember all the great adventures I've had, and I remember all the good friends that I've made. While some kids my age would have 'battles' with their pet Pokémon, I would actually be out competing in Leagues on television. When some kids were doing their homework at a table in their house every night, I'd have to do mine on a rock in a forest somewhere. Getting my diploma was a lot more difficult, but it was also more fun, and it made getting it a lot more rewarding."
Delia nodded. Smiling, she explained that she was glad that Ash was happy with his decision.
"For the first year, I was so worried something would happen to you. I mean, it's true that I could always find out where you were with the tracking device on your Pokédex, but I still felt uncomfortable about letting you out at such a young age. I was scared that something would disappoint you. When you were little, all you would talk about was how you were going to leave home and become a Master and make me so proud, but the second you left the house I began to worry that you'd get beaten early in your journey, or you'd get hurt, and suddenly your dreams would be crushed."
"You thought I'd quit because I'd gotten beaten?" Ash was surprised by the lack of his mother's faith. "I'd never give up because of something like that!"
"Well, I really thought you wouldn't either. You're no quitter, just like your father wasn't. However, I was still worried. I think I only began to relax when you called and told me about meeting some new friends, Brock and Misty, and told me how great they were. After I learned that you were meeting people and having fun, I stopped cringing every time I thought about you out in the wilderness with only that stubborn Pikachu. By the time you'd left for Johto, I was completely confident that you'd follow through on your dream."
"Well, I haven't followed through yet, but I will."
"I know you will honey," Delia remarked. "And I also know that you'll go to college and make me just as proud. You're still on track to battling the Master by January, right?"
Groaning, Ash realized he'd never told his mother about the bad news. "Sorry Ma, but I was doing the math and I don't think I'll even finish travelling through Sinnoh before next March."
Her lighthearted demeanor had instantly vanished as a frown crossed her face. "But that's a whole year from now!"
"I know, but I need more time." He gave a nervous laugh as he explained that he'd fallen a little behind his schedule.
"I don't care how far you've fallen behind. You're still going to college in the next fall semester."
"I will, I will," he assured. He explained his plans to leave for Hoenn in two weeks after wrapping up his catching list for Johto. "I should be home by March, and then I'll challenge Gary before going to face the Master himself."
Giving a small sigh, Delia nodded. "As long as you're enrolled, I'll be happy. I don't want you being like some of these people in the Pokémon League who think that just because they're paid really well means that they don't need an education."
"I know Ma," Ash replied. His mother had explained her disdain for rich, uneducated athletes many times before.
After he reassured her a few more times that he would not fall behind again, Delia rose from the mattress and smoothed her blouse. "So do you want to go say goodbye to everyone?"
"Are they all leaving?" He was surprised to see them all go after just getting there a day earlier.
"They have to, Ash. Most of them had to take vacation days just to come see your battle."
"Yeah, I better go tell them goodbye then."
However, as he walked out the door with his mother, his mind was far removed from the distant relatives and acquaintances he was about to see off. He was much more focused on how he was going to make Misty his girlfriend.
Author's Note: This chapter was not as action-packed as the last few, I know, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. I'm not an expert on Delia, so if she seemed out of character to you, then please let me know. I wrote down her character as best I could with as little as we know about her from the anime, but if there's a part where you think I wrote her saying the wrong thing, or if you think I just wrote her entire character wrong, then I'd really like to hear your thoughts on how I could improve that, since she's bound to be in future chapters. Also, I know many of you wanted me to vilify Dawn, but, despite my status as a loyal Pokéshipper, I couldn't just make her plain mean. Some of you will be upset, I'm sure, that I didn't make her seem really mean, or that I didn't have Misty just murder her, but I need this fic to be realistic, and the truth is that I don't think Dawn is that hateful a person. She just had a crush on Ash, so I did my best to portray her more as a girl with a broken heart in this chapter than as some spiteful woman bent on getting revenge. Still, if you think I could've improved on her or Misty's reactions, then please let me know!
Anyway, here's my recommendations for this week:
Actually, I don't have any recs for this week. As many of you know, I've started my own community on this site (check out my home page if you haven't seen it) and I now have a select team of three readers (who go through the endless list of AAML stories and find the best written ones for the community) and one fellow writer, The Bloody Knife, who helps me keep the community relevant. She's an awesome author, and if you haven't checked out her fic, "Midnight", then you should.
Anyway, as of now, this community has exactly 30 fics, all of which have passed my staff's very discriminating tastes. Of these 30 fics, six are frequently updated and still in progress, so please take a look at them and send a review to their authors if you think they're good enough for your time.
Before I say goodbye (to anyone who's read this far), I'd like you to know how committed I am to this story. I have been living with my family in Naples, Italy for the last two years (Navy brat), and I had to come back to the States to get ready for college and because Texas is 1,000 times more awesome than Italy. Anyway, yesterday was hard because I had to make two layovers and go through customs all by myself (I've always flown with family and friends), and by the time I made it here, to my grandparents' house, I'd been awake for 27 hours with no food to speak of. I slept in and missed Church this morning (for obvious reasons), but as soon as I woke up, the first thing I thought to do was grab my laptop and finish editing my story to put it up. I just wanted to share this story so you all know that I'm extremely motivated to keep writing this thanks to your awesome encouragement and reviews. Though I'd like to say writing is its own reward, the truth is I probably wouldn't keep this up if I wasn't constantly getting great advice and compliments from readers such as yourself. So remember to PLEASE REVIEW if you have even a second for a one-word comment. Your opinions are important to me (which is why I always try to reply to them).
Have a good two weeks!