Now that we've seen how Ash is feeling, let's see what's going on in the world of everyone's favorite gym leader: Misty Waterflower! Thanks for the reviews so far, I didn't think I'd get any to be honest, so they make me feel proud! Enjoy this chapter! I own nothing except the story.
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Chapter 2

Normal POV

"I hate being a Gym Leader!" That was the sound that was heard almost every day at the Cerulean City Gym, and it always came from the mouth of Misty Waterflower. Two years ago she had been forced to come back to Cerulean and take over the gym that her three "sensational" sisters were going to abandon in order to take a yearlong cruise around the world.

And now, a year after they finally returned, Misty was still trapped inside the gym, forced to be away from the boy she loved. "Oh, Ash…I wish I was out there with you…instead of being stuck here because of my loser sisters!" she always cried. She had no idea that somewhere in the Sinnoh League, a certain jet-black haired boy was missing her almost as much as she missed him.

She didn't always feel this way. For the first few months, she actually enjoyed being a Gym Leader. The thrill of beginning to build her own legacy, the challenge of rebuilding the Cerulean City Gym from a Kanto-wide joke into an honest-to-goodness challenge for beginning trainers...or a final test for trainers who thought they would simply save her for last based on the gym's previous reputation. It was something she found to be exhilarating.

At first.

After visiting with Ash a couple of times during his journey in Hoenn, she was given a reminder of what it felt like to travel with him, the warm feeling that came with being with her best friend, the adventure, the excitement...somehow it dimmed the bright future she'd started to envision for herself.

Then as the months continued, and her sisters returned, it became more and more evident to Misty that being a Gym Leader wasn't going to be as glorious as she'd led herself to believe. Her sisters were all but completely useless, the constant pressure to perform...and of course the constant absence of the one person she cared for more than anyone else...it began breeding resentment in her, and on this day, it would come to a head.

Misty's POV

I pushed my red hair out of my face as I battled the third challenger of the day. I had let it grow much longer in the time I was stuck in the gym, but it was proving to be a minor irritation since it kept swishing into my face. "I'll have to remember to put my hair back up before I start a battle." The fact that I had lost two matches in a row, and I was currently losing another one was making me pretty mad too. I was taking on a young boy with a Weepinbell, who strangely enough had already taken out my Staryu and Starmie. But I got my fair share of hits in as well, as I had defeated his Sandshrew with a powerful Water Gun attack from Staryu.

"Misty calls Gyarados!" I threw my final Pokéball out into the water, and my powerful sea monster emerged and gave an intimidating roar, which cut the attack power of my opponent's Weepinbell.

"Weepinbell, use Razor Leaf!" The Weepinbell fired razor sharp leaves at my Gyarados, and I ordered him to dive underwater to avoid the attack.

"Now Gyarados, use Flamethrower!" I ordered my Gyarados to use the move I had spent a lot of time perfecting; do you have any idea how hard it is to get a water-type to learn a fire-type attack? Nearly impossible…but I want to become the world's greatest water Pokémon master!

And stuff like that is just something I need to work on, but my practice is limited here in the gym, I could be a lot better if I was out there with…him, learning about new techniques and new Pokémon. Gyarados emerged from the water and his Flamethrower easily took care of the boy's Weepinbell, and I congratulated my dragon for a job well done as he roared in celebration.

"Alright, this is my last Pokémon, I'm getting that badge…go Pikachu!"

My heart skipped a beat when that Pikachu came onto the battlefield. It reminded me of the boy that I was forced to leave behind two years ago. "Oh, Ash…" I tried my best to get my head straight. "I've got to snap out of this, I still have a match to win!" I told myself silently. "Gyarados, use Flamethrower again!"

"Dodge it with Quick Attack, Pikachu!" Gyarados launched Flamethrowers all over the battlefield, but the speedy electric mouse dodged his attacks every time. I could see that he was getting tired from blasting so much, and that I had to do something. "Pikachu, finish it with Thundershock!" the boy screamed.

"Piiikaaa chuuuu!"

The small jolt was all it took to knock out my exhausted Gyarados, and when I finally realized I had lost, I sadly recalled my dragon. "You did a good job Gyarados." I whispered. I walked to the side of the gym, where I was forced to give away the third Cascade Badge of the day with what I hoped was a congratulatory smile on my face. "You did a good job, here's your reward."

"Alright! I got the Cascade Badge!" the boy and his three Pokémon cheered. Seeing his victory dance only reminded me even more of my best friend and secret love. As soon as he was out of sight, I ran back into the gym with tears streaming down my face. I didn't even stop when Daisy appeared to see the outcome of the match, I just ran into my room, slammed the door behind me, and cried.

"Why does everything I see have to remind me of Ash?!" I screamed into the pillow on my bed, trying to muffle the sounds of my pathetic crying...but with my heart in turmoil...it was hard to resist the urge to sob.

Normal POV

After seeing Misty run up into her room crying, Lily and Violet appeared next to Daisy. "Like, what's wrong with baby sis?" Lily asked.

"Yeah, she's like, totally off her game." Violet said, agreeing.

Daisy sighed and slumped her shoulders a bit. "I guess, I should like, go talk to her, huh?" Her two younger sisters nodded in agreement. Daisy quietly walked up the steps that led to Misty's room, and gently knocked on the door. "Misty, can I come in?" she asked softly. When she didn't hear a response, she slowly opened the door, and saw her little sister asleep on her bed with tear stains on her face. Seeing her there, Daisy sighed again and shook her head. "There's nothing I can do while she's asleep." She stepped out of the room and quietly closed the door behind her, she actually felt sorry for her little sister, which didn't happen often.

"Did you like, talk to her?" Violet asked as their older sister came back down the steps.

The eldest sister shook her head sympathetically. "She actually like, cried herself to sleep. I kinda wish I knew what was wrong."

"I'll tell you what's wrong! She's like, lost three straight matches today, and she's only won one in the past three days!" Lily yelled angrily.

"Like, calm down Lil," Daisy replied defensively. "It's not like she lost on purpose, and she's still better than all of us put together when it comes to battling."

"But not fashion!" Violet said randomly.

"Well, yeah, obviously." Daisy threw her long blonde hair over her shoulder. "But that doesn't explain why she seems so off lately."

"Well, when she wakes up you have to like, pry it out of her." Lily said.

"I'll try, ok?" Daisy huffed and screwed on a determined expression. "Now, let's get ready for the show tonight."

THE NEXT DAY

Misty woke up still mentally exhausted from the stress of the previous day. She had even dreamed of being on the road again with Ash and Brock, which relieved a little of the stress she was feeling. "Azu, Azu!" (Hi mommy!) Misty's little Azurill squeaked, happily bouncing on her tail.

Seeing her baby Pokémon down on the ground next to her bed, Misty smiled and bent down to pick up her Azurill and give her a hug. "Good morning Azurill, how are you feeling today?"

"Azu azu!" (I feel good!)

Misty giggled and went to the kitchen to get both her and Azurill some breakfast. As soon as she got there, she poured some specially made Pokéchow that Brock had given her a recipe for into a bowl, and placed it on the ground for Azurill. "Here you go Azurill, eat up ok?" Her Pokémon nodded and happily started eating. With that taken care of, Misty reached into the cupboard and pulled out a box of cereal with her sister's pictures on them. "Ugh, I can't even eat without them." she muttered to herself.

It was times like these when she actually missed Brock more than Ash. With much reluctance, Misty finally gave in and poured the cereal into a bowl and poured milk over it. "I guess it doesn't taste so bad, at least not as bad as I thought it would." she finally concluded.

Meanwhile, Daisy had woken up to get her own breakfast, and saw Misty already chowing down on cereal. "I guess now is a good a time as ever." Daisy whispered to herself. Steeling herself, she walked into the kitchen, and gave Misty her attempt at a smile.

Misty caught her try, and started wondering what it was for. "Alright, what does she want?" If you asked her, Misty would probably admit that she and Daisy were starting to grow closer, but Misty still had some reservations about her older sisters.

Daisy sat herself down in front of Misty, and tried to get a conversation started. "So, how'd you sleep last night?"

The redhead hesitated before answering. "Good." she finally said without meeting her sister's gaze.

Seeing as her first question got a rather apathetic response, she tried again. "How'd the battle go yesterday?"

At that, Misty snapped as she dropped her spoon back into the bowl and glared up at her sister. "What do you want Daisy?"

"Zu?" (Huh?) Misty's sudden outburst caught the attention of Azurill.

Misty took a deep breath and looked back down at her stunned Pokémon. "Keep eating sweetie." she said as she tried to reign in her temper. Satisfied with that, Azurill smiled and went back to eating. As for Misty, she waited until her baby Pokémon was fully engaged in enjoying her breakfast before crossing her arms over her chest and glaring back up at her sister, her foot tapping impatiently. "Well?"

The tall blonde sighed and gave her youngest sister an earnest look. "Is there something wrong with you Misty?"

"No Daisy, there is not. Why?"

Daisy gulped silently before she answered. "Because your battling looks like it's gotten a bit worse lately." she said cautiously.

That was all it took to flare up Misty's temper. "I knew this would have something to do with me losing those battles!" she snarled. "If you're going to torture me because of it, then I don't wanna hear it!" Misty grabbed her bowl of cereal, and stomped back up to her room, slamming the door behind her. She then placed her breakfast on the nightstand next to her bed and lied down on her bed face up. "I hate this place...I just want out already." she whispered to herself.

Misty heard Daisy come up and knock on the door again. "Misty, please, I just wanna help." Daisy said from behind the door.

"If you wanna help, then let me go!" Misty thought angrily. She waited a few minutes, and eventually heard the footfalls of Daisy walking back down the steps. "I miss you Ash." Once again her thoughts drifted off to Ash, the boy who was the source of her emotional struggles...the boy she loved.