Hello :P It is Wednesday and I am back to upload the second story for the second week of my PokeShipping Month. This one doesn't actually feature Ash in person but it's heavily PokeShipping orientated and there's some sweetness at the end. I had so much fun writing this and re-reading it too. It feels like something I would've written a long time ago. The characters it focuses on are Misty, Jordan and James and like the title suggests, the theme is "Maiden's Peak Revisted". I hope you enjoy!
Ages:
Misty: 30
Jordan: 30
James: 37
Disclaimer: I own the stories and the OCs mentioned!
I smiled to myself and exhaled contentedly, my nose pointing towards the clear and crisp sky of yet another final day of summer in Kanto. The atmosphere was buzzing. The scenery was glowing. My senses were tingling. I could smell just how crisp and clear the air truly was. I could feel the hint of the approaching Autumn in the air. I could smell the lighting of fires and the sweet aroma of candyfloss. My ears were shivering just as much with sensory sensations. I could hear laughter. I could hear music. I could hear joy. It really was one of those moments in my life where I was truly happy. And I was so glad to be spending each and every second of those moments with people that I cherished dear to my heart.
Walking through the Maiden's Peak Festival on the last day of the festivities was our little quartet. It was James. It was Jordan. It was Misty. And it was me. The orange haired female was in front, her blue coloured kimono swaying around her ankles as she marched on ahead. She looked as if she was as contented as I was. Or at the very least, I strongly hoped that she was. I wanted nothing more for her. I wanted nothing less either. I wanted to feel joy with her. And I wanted her to be filled with joy as well. She was.
She pretended to roll her eyes and wrinkle her nose as she slyly glanced back from walking ahead but she couldn't stop herself from showing off an amused smirk while shaking her head. She wasn't in the company of her beloved and the father of their new-born baby that she was pregnant with, but she was with the next best thing. She was with James and she was with her Dad, Jordan. And the lavender haired male let out his own sigh of contentment as he tried to keep up with his female best friend, one of his hands going to the strap of his backpack.
But before he could speak, the bigger and the louder of the two male's got there before him, letting out a sigh of happiness that completely drowned his own. He nudged forward, unable to stop himself from moving to walk back alongside his good male friend before airily moving ahead of him to prove a point.
"Well, I don't know about you guys but I am thoroughly enjoying my time here." He announced the group with a smile and went back to licking his ice cream cone that for many minutes had been dripping down his fingers. And all the while that that had been going on, James had started losing the interest in his own one upon seeing Jordan devour the remains of his. It had worked out for me, though, as the lavender haired male was using his other hand to feed me the rest of his treat while I perched on his shoulder. Hooray! The yellow haired male continued. "What has been your favourite bit?"
Jordan asked with such friendliness and innocence that it made Misty smile and have even more of pep in her step. How did she survive all of those years without him? She didn't know. I felt the same way. He was truly one of the most charismatic yet gentle men in the entire world. James agreed with us as well. But he couldn't stop himself from answering very quickly to tease his male best friend.
"Oh wow, let's see." The lavender haired male tried to begin joking around with the other green orbed male but Jordan didn't quite understand his tone so he certainly didn't have the patience to hear James continuing his playfully. He interjected him back, his ice cream dripping all the way down his fingers and making light splashes on the floor as he walked.
"The music and the drums?" Jordan interrupted him enthusiastically, his face lighting up even more at the memory of them. He peeked from behind one of his hands and smiled as he licked his melting ice cream. James didn't let his plan to tease the other male go in vain.
"Which left me partially deaf in one ear." he responded in a level tone and raised his eyebrow while Jordan just shrugged as if to remind him that he still had another ear left to listen with. Misty held in snickers to herself and listened to the two males interacting.
The yellow haired male continued peeking from behind his ice cream fingers as the lavender haired male resisted showing off his own smirk. After getting most of the melting liquid off his digits, Jordan shrugged and tried again, trying to guess more of the things that he certainly had enjoyed.
"When we meditated in a group to the sounds of dusk?" Jordan asked in such a hopeful way that you could tell that he was anticipating being reminded of what happened. His green eyes lit up innocently and slightly mischievously. Misty's aquamarine ones did too as she listened from ahead. James didn't hesitate to give his male friend what he wanted, still showing off the unamused expression and level tone.
"You fell asleep and rolled on me, Jordan." The lavender haired male refreshed the yellow haired male's memory though, of course, he didn't need too. But unlike the longer haired and smaller of the two male's, Misty's father wasn't that great at hiding or suppressing his feelings or reactions. He burst into laughter before continuing to remind the group of our shared time.
"Okay, what about the coconut shy? You have to admit that was really fun." The male Water Pokémon enthusiast tried to soften his voice to act like he wasn't mischievous but it didn't work at all. All it did was amuse both Misty and I. And it ended up amusing James as well. In fact, it caused him to act almost as animated as his yellow haired friend. And this made Jordan all the more gleeful.
"You bloody won the biggest stuffed toy known to man!" James tried to say in an exasperated way but he ended up laughing himself, shaking his head while trying to suppress them.
And seeing his good friend laughing because of him gave Jordan the same reaction as when he had won said toy. He twirled around while walking in the middle of the festival path and pretended to laugh sneakily. He then stopped crunching on his ice cream cone and used his empty (but sticky) hands to hold onto the back of his new plushie which was resting over his own backpack and was way bigger than it. He smiled happily.
"Yeah! And isn't she a dream?" he smirked and playfully bashed his hip against James' not noticing that he almost sent him flying as he caught up with his daughter over again. His lavender coloured kimono made the same swooshing sound around his ankles as hers did. Jordan let out a contented sigh. "That coconut shy sure was fun."
"You didn't exactly act shy when you gladly beat that kid and almost knocked him over tying that massive fish plush to your back." James couldn't stop himself from reminding him, briefly switching his ice cream to his other hand so he could push his hair from his eyes while smirking. Jordan just shrugged.
"Anyway!" he almost bellowed airily to get all of our attention though he had it anyway and after being close to Misty's heels for a good while, he slowed back again to walk back alongside James and gave him an affection but bone crushing side hug. His smile made it worth it that he squeezed me in the process and caused the ice cream cone to be lost. "My point is that I've had a great time doing all of those things and in your company and I hope you feel the same way."
I was close to sticking out my bottom lip over losing the ice cream that James had kindly bestowed upon me but after hearing Jordan's words, I didn't care about that little thing anymore. And all over again, I was filled with contentment, just like how I felt when I was looking up at the sky. I was filled with joy. In their company, I was filled with joy. Jordan was too. He hoped the others felt the same way. And I knew they did.
The lavender haired male wanted to raise an eyebrow and stop smirking to tease his good male friend but even he knew when to quit it. So after recovering from the bone crushing affection from the bigger male, he didn't hesitate to smile genuinely at him and wrap his own arm around him back. He nodded his head and let out his own sigh of happiness.
"I know you do, buddy, and I have enjoyed it all too. The going deaf and being crushed and losing all my cash for a damn fish plush have been very fun. And I wouldn't want to spend any of these moments with anyone but you guys." He told the whole group sincerely but focused his gaze on Jordan and after he patted his chest lightly, it resulted in yet another bear hug from him and that time, I was pleased to receive it as well.
I was pleased to hear James' words as well. I very much enjoyed being in the company who said how they felt, regardless of the way they had been judged for it in the past or the way that it had come across. I truly loved our little quartet. I loved Jordan. I loved James. And of course I loved Misty. She had been rather quiet on the walk down and the lavender haired male being the good friend that he was, noticed this.
And even though she was very happy and very happy just listening to two of her favourite guys laughing together, he included her. He hurried up his pace and gently tapped her on the shoulder before wrapping that arm back around Jordan again.
"So what has been your favourite bit, Munchkin?" he asked her with a genuine smile and after the late summer breeze blew his hair in his face, he didn't have to flick it to remove it because Jordan did for him with his finger while they continued walking together. James' attention and smile remained on the orange haired female. "Has it been the ear splitting drumming from your Dad or watching him work his magic at the coconut shy? Dare I ask?"
My best friend's wife didn't hesitate to laugh heartedly at being reminded of all those activities all over again and after us boys laughed with her, she shook her head, the wind blowing her own bangs in her eyes. Following that, she smiled and looked briefly towards the sky. She looked pretty. She looked intriguing. She looked mysterious. She then shrugged, continuing to walk on ahead while patting her shoulder to invite me onto it since my ice cream was no more. I happily accepted.
"Oh, I don't know, there's so much to choose from." She told her lavender haired best friend in a happy voice, thinking of the memories that had been pointed out to her and thinking of other ones too. She then shrugged a second time, her expression becoming even more almost secretive. "I think my favourite moment is yet to come."
I smiled upon hearing this and nuzzled my cheek against hers. I was glad to be hearing her words. I was glad to be close to her. I missed my best friend while he was at his Pokémon Conference but I was glad to be in the company that I was in too. The lavender haired male shared the same reaction as Misty and I. He smiled when he heard his best friend's words and though he didn't know what had bought on the second part of her sentence, he smiled all the same and nodded too.
Together Misty, James, Jordan and I were a very close group. But we were all very different too. Needless to say, we had very different lives and thoughts and feelings, even though we spent a lot of time together. That was a good thing. But that was proved to be true by the way that Jordan reacted. He didn't understand what his daughter was getting at so he pretended to roll his eyes, letting his arm slide from being wrapped around James. He pretended to have a strop but had a playful twinkle in his eye.
"Oh, that means she's going to drag us somewhere boring next. It's probably going to be some mermaid workshop or design your own surfboard or eat as many ice creams as you can." He pretended to yawn before, at the exact time that James gave him a glance without even having to say anything, and his ears seemed to prick up. Jordan's hands went back to the straps of his backpack over his lavender kimono. He realised that all of those ideas sounded fun after all. But he remembered to play it cool. "…So where are we going?"
The lavender haired male didn't stop himself from laughing amusedly and fondly at the antics of his good male friend and I of course joined him, giggling myself from Misty's shoulder. But the orange haired female didn't laugh. She certainly wasn't offended by her father's actions but she was on a mission. She was very much on a mission.
So while James kept quiet other than his laugher and Jordan continued to look around with big eyes, his ears still pricking, Misty smiled and started moving her arms at her sides while she walked.
"Secret. You'll know when we get there." She told our group mysteriously and with that, she picked up her walking pace over again and marched like she did when she was on a journey with my best friend, her kimono flapping enthusiastically as she walked ahead.
The lavender haired male chuckled even more when he saw Jordan's eyes widen at her energy and he didn't stop himself from smirking, pushing his hair out of his eyes all over again. He pulled the back of his locks out of the collar of his yellow kimono after it got caught under there.
"She gets that energy from you, you know." James told Jordan with a fond smirk and a shake of the head before looking over his shoulder and noticing how far Misty and I had got away from them in the process. He also noticed how the Maiden's Festival really was very busy and there were lots of people around. He smiled at Jordan. "C'mon, hold my hand or you'll get lost."
The yellow haired male initially protested upon hearing this but after he too noticed how busy the last area of the festival was and pulled a face, he soon didn't hesitate to oblige. He held onto James' hand and the two of them quickly watched to catch the orange haired female and I up. And soon enough, it was James' turn to pull a face and wish he had the opportunity to protest. Jordan's hand sure was sticky!
The two male's continued walking quickly to catch up with Misty and after not much time at all, they did. Together we walked away from the loudness and the togetherness and the glow of the festival and down towards the ocean front. I nuzzled my best friend's wife's cheek happily all over again and I had time to reflect. I had love in my heart and I had time to reflect.
I thought about the first time that we had visited Maiden's Peak. Ash and Misty were just ten years old and Brock was with us too. They were so young. They were so innocent. They were so fresh faced. But they were strong. They were indignant on keeping the story of the Maiden alive. And I thought it was wonderful that, years later, we were keeping the memory of all that alive as well.
Ash and Misty were no longer ten years old and had ten year olds of their own but those adventures were still very much alive. They lived on in us all. And they would never die. They were infinity. And they would go on and on forever. And together, even though it was a beautiful night and so very peaceful, we seemed to walk on and on forever!
Misty walked along the shoreline of the beach, determined to find the right spot. And despite his pretend hesitance to leave the festival in the first place, Jordan was in his element all over again watching along the beach front with his best girl.
He had long since let James' hand go and after that, I had hopped on his shoulder once again. Though the lavender haired male was mildly out of breath from walking and lagging behind the two Water Pokémon enthusiasts, we were both almost glad to do so. They deserved some time. They deserved a lot of time. They deserved a lot of moments. They deserved a walk alongside the sea. Alone. Together.
It gave me even more time to reflect and I'm sure that it did the same for James as well. He had been there since the beginning. Bit by bit and year by year, Misty had opened up to him about what happened to her father and told him all of the memories that she had of him. And then he came back. From 'up there', Jordan had come back. Her mother had as well. They both came back to her.
And she was eternally grateful for that. As a ten year old, she wanted to keep the Ghost of Maiden Peak's memory alive. And even though it pained her, she leant to do the same for her parents as well. And it paid off. Boy, did it pay off. It paid off for us all. They were both in all of our lives. And they were both a blessing in all of our lives too.
Misty finally found a spot on the beach that was overlooking the monumental rock of the Maiden. She almost curtsied towards her as she seated herself down on the sand, crossing her legs and looking over at her. Jordan clumsily flopped next to her and got sand all over her pretty blue kimono but she didn't mind. She was glad to be in the company of her beloved father. And she was glad to be in the company of her beloved best friend too.
James sat down with them both and shared the same smiles as them. We all sat together. We all looked together. We all looked in the direction of the Maiden. And we all reflected.
It was impossible for me to know exactly what the others were thinking of, but I knew what I was thinking of. I looked at the Maiden Rock for a while but soon enough, I couldn't stop myself from looking at the orange haired female softly stroking her baby bump instead. My heart filled with love. Even though Ash wasn't physically there with us, a part of him certainly was. I knew that he would be disappointed to be missing all the fun that we were having but he would be glad for us at the same time. And he would be more than overjoyed that Misty was getting quality time with her father, even if James was there!
It was impossible for me to know exactly what the others were thinking of but I hoped that Misty was thinking of Ash. I knew that I was. I knew that Jordan and James were thinking of their loved ones too. And together, they were thinking about Lynne. They definitely were when they looked at the Maiden's Rock; they smiled thoughtfully and seemed to nod in a special way towards it. She wasn't the only one who wanted to be reunited with her nearest and dearest.
We all let out a simultaneous sigh and looked out to sea instead but it was a noise of contentment, not a noise of pain. There was no room for heartache. In each other's company, there was only room for happy memories and joy. We certainly had made lots of memories that trip – enough to fill a whole scrapbook and certainly enough to light up any future darkness.
We really had had a whole lot of fun. We had laughed together. We had eaten together. We had woken together. We had teased one and other. We had held one and other. We truly had bonded together. And that was obvious by the way that, at the exact same time, we all glanced towards the Maiden Rock all over again. But only one of us broke the silence. And that one of us was Jordan.
"So what's the deal with that girl again?" he asked in that nonchalant but energised tone of his, finally taking his back pack off his back and his large plush toy along with it too. James glanced over at him while he ran his fingers through his blonde, curtain-like locks. "What's her story again?"
Upon hearing this, Misty couldn't help but roll her eyes and call his name in an exasperated tone and at first, I couldn't tell if it was fond or not. But soon enough, I understood. She moved closer to him and she shook her head. She reminded him. Looking at him rather than out to sea and playing with her bangs.
"Oh, Daddy, you've been hearing nothing but that story for this whole week! Surely you haven't been partying whole-heartedly while not actually knowing why we're here?" she asked him with a raised eyebrow but that soon softened to a fond smirk. James' expression did the same thing while he glanced between them both and listened to them. He didn't say anything. He just enjoyed their presence. We both did.
Jordan stuck his bottom lip out and stubbornly stayed quiet for a few seconds when he acknowledged her eyebrow raise but after doing so, he shook his head and made his eyes go wider and rounder. Or maybe that's just how they were. They certainly were very sweet and shimmery as the moon started to appear in the sky.
"Of course I know the story but I want you to tell me it again." He told his daughter in a somewhat pouty and childish voice but he soon pushed past more of his stubbornness. He tried to airily rest his cheek on her shoulder but he couldn't stop himself from admitting while twiddling his thumbs. He was sheepish. But he was sincere. "I like the way you tell it."
James smiled upon hearing this and looked up at the sky. Misty's cheeks blushed a rosy pink before she scrunched her face up shyly and smiled. My heart melted. It was certainly a lovely bit of role reversal. No doubt that he had told her all kinds of stories when she was younger; some of them real and some of them fantasy. And now that they were reunited all over again, it was her turn to enchant her father with stories. And because it was him who asked it of her, of course, she didn't hesitate to do so.
She enjoyed the feeling of Jordan resting his cheek on her shoulder and she continued lightly stroking her baby bump as she got started the tale of the Maiden in her own words. Like James, I looked up at the sky and my brain was filled with imagery as we listened to the myth.
Over two thousand years ago, a war had taken place and soldiers were being shipped overseas from Kanto to fight for their region. There was a Maiden and she was deeply in love with one of the soldiers who was sent to fight in said war and she made a promise to him. That promise was that she'd wait for him on the cliff until he returned, no matter how long it took. But she ended up having to wait a very long time because he never returned from battle. And according to the legend, she died waiting for her one true love and her body became part of the cliff itself. Maiden's Cliff.
Her desperate body became a monument and the location was named after the love and the legend. To this day, her spirit haunts the area with the help of a mischievous ghost Pokémon called Gastly who has made his own promise to preserve her legend every year during the Summer Festival by haunting this very peak.
And as you can see from recent events, a festival is held at Maiden's Peak at the end of the Summer. Visitors come from all over the world to visit the statue and the Maiden. It's a myth. It's a legend. But we've lived through it many times. And we believe it. We almost keep that story alive as much as the Gastly.
Even though it was a bittersweet story filled with romance and pain, after hearing it all over again, Jordan couldn't help but open his eyes after shutting them and letting out quite the contented sigh while he looked over at the Maiden Monument.
Misty rolled her eyes fondly after her tale came to an end and she didn't stop herself from stroking her belly. She didn't stop her father from resting his cheek on her shoulder. She thought to herself about all the details that she had recounted and after listening to it as well, James pulled his legs to his chest on the beach and ran his fingers through his hair. He asked his best friend.
"So do you think that her husband will ever return from war? Will the loves ever be reunited, do you think?" he asked the orange haired female and focused on her for a bit before looking at Jordan when he didn't get an answer other than a shrug and a wistful smile. I knew that the little baby in her belly had since woken up and started tossing and turning. She was stroking it all the more. Jordan didn't have an answer so James said what he thought. He uncrossed his legs. He looked up once again. He spoke with almost a sigh.
"I don't think it really matters. In a way, as long as they're both thinking of each other, they're together. As long as people keep hearing the story and wishing that they'll be together, in a way, they will be. Think about all of the generations that have heard this story. Think about all the generations that will hear this story. Imagine that. Your love story being known all over the world. One can only wish hard enough."
I smiled upon hearing James' thoughtful words while he looked up at the sky. Misty did too. She nodded her head and she continued playing with her baby bump but the way she smiled and nodded and the breeze tickled her bangs, you could tell that she was about to answer. She was about to respond to her best friend. But Jordan got there before her. He sat further up, running his fingers through his own hair when the wind tickled it.
"So what happens now? People just have a party? Is that all they do? Other than making sure everybody knows about the story of course." Jordan asked with interested and round green orbs and right away, Misty shook her head. She was definitely one of the people who made it her duty that people knew of the story and of the importance of the story. After all, it was something that bought her and Ash even closer together. She shook her head defiantly but looked at her father in a way that was somewhat delighted to be informing him.
"They don't just have a party, Dad. One of the most important bits is at the last day of the festival and on the last day of summer, people put lanterns on paper boats and send them out to sea to help guide spirits home but especially the Maiden. In fact…"
Misty was about to explain the significance of this gesture and the beauty of the moment of letting the lanterns go when, all of a sudden, out of the corner of all of our eyes, we saw that little event taking place. We were sat by the water front and because all of the people celebrating had sent off their glowing boats, they were coming nearer to us and travelling the ocean. The orange haired female gasped. Her expression looked very crumpled indeed.
"Oh no!" she tried not to cry out and get too upset but she couldn't stop herself. She stood right up on the sand and held her hand in front of her face. She looked at the hundreds of paper lanterns with all different kinds of Pokémon and messages decorating them gliding past us. Her chest moved with disappointment. "We've missed it. We were too busy mucking around and we missed it! We'll have to wait until next year." Misty tried not to sniff but she almost turned to bury her head in her Father's shoulder.
"No we won't." Jordan told her and before she could get too comfy with nuzzling her face into his muscular shoulder, he too stood up on the sand but he didn't stand still. He suddenly waded towards the ocean and splashed into the ocean and picked up three of the paper lanterns with great care. While Misty and James looked at him with wide eyes, he bounded back. He showed off a smile that was brighter than all three of the candles put together. "We can send these ones on their way. Who knows? They could've gotten lost if hadn't of intervened."
I looked over at Jordan. James looked over at Misty. Misty looked over at James. Jordan just looked at the lanterns on the beach that he produced. It was all so easy to him. It was all so simple. Misty was rather hesitant at first. She was about to interrupt and point out that people would be annoyed if they had spotted him fishing them out of the sea but James soon couldn't stop himself from agreeing with Jordan at his rare confidence and calmness.
"I think your Dad is right." He told her with a nod and a smile as he was the last one to stand up and he moved over to the water's edge to line up the three boats with the yellow haired man. He turned to smile at his best female friend, running his hand through his flowing locks. "We should give them a proper send off. And I think we should say a message to a person who isn't here as well. We should thank them."
I hopped onto Misty's shoulder all over again and held onto her hair. I almost clung onto it and nuzzled it. I very much liked the sound of that idea. She did too. She almost felt her eyes filling with tears. She breathed out. She really did enjoy the company of those two human boys. Even though she wished that her third human boy could be there too. She didn't realise that he was.
After lightly dabbing the corners of her eyes and not hesitating to let a beam take over her face, she joined Jordan and James at the water front and stood between them. She nodded her head. She very much liked the sound of the two green eyed male's ideas together as well. She nodded her head some more. They did too. They picked up the boats that they had claimed. But then Misty couldn't stop herself from hesitating and tilting her head on her side teasingly. She narrowed her eyes playfully.
"…I know you guys are only doing this because you want to send out a wish to Mom." She told them with an amused smirk and she folded her arms over her chest before she reached down to pick her own boat up. James looked at Jordan. He knew that he was about to comment and mumble that he might also say some words to a heroic favourite film character of his but the lavender haired male had things to say too. He had important things to say.
"You don't know that…" James responded back to Misty with a slight pout but he recovered from it after she tilted her head at him even more and continued to grin. He was almost starting to go back on his idea at the teasing but he decided to push through. He tried to shrug casually and look into the horizon. But then he looked at Misty. And he didn't look away from her. "I was actually thinking that we should say something to Ash. We should thank him. After all, he was the other person in the group that was there for our first Maiden's Peak experience."
Jordan rolled his eyes but that was just because he was still bitter that he hadn't got to say what he wanted to say because of James. Misty was stunned. Her eyes widened. Mine did too. But we seemed to get over our shock soon enough.
After not too much time, our eyes were filled with gladness instead. The orange haired female and I nodded our heads. We were touched. We very very much liked that idea. We held our hands over our hearts. We couldn't have nodded more if we wanted to!
We really wanted to participate in that idea. Jordan went along with it. The lavender haired male nodded and smiled upon seeing Misty so happy and he knew that it was the right thing to do. He lightly leaned over to kiss her forehead. Then he stepped further out towards the ocean and waded in the water, his glowing lantern in his hands. He bent down towards the sea and before he let it go. He said some words. He led by example. We were all listening. Misty's eyes were glowing.
"Ash… We haven't always seen eye to eye but I almost wish that you could have been here for this trip. So we're doing this for you now. Thank you for always looking after my best friend and for being the reason that we all got to visit Maiden's Peak twenty years ago today."
After James said his words and let go of his boat and allowed it to travel towards the horizon and assist whatever sprit that needed it, Misty's heart was glowing just as much as her eyes. But she wiped her orbs all over again before looking over at her father. She didn't have much hope in her eyes. The truth was she didn't expect him to be as easy-going as James and go along with their little gesture. But like he had done for her since the day she was born, he surprised her. He surprised her and showed that he would do anything for her.
Jordan made a point by pretending to need pushing towards the ocean from James in order to do it but soon enough, he bent down towards the ocean himself. He was a little more hesitant to let the little boat go than the lavender haired male but after he said his own words, he did so.
"Thanks for not being here, Ash. It meant that I got to be the one to spend time with Misty and I have cherished the time with my daughter. I've liked hearing the tale of Maiden's Peak over and over again and I guess I'll hear your stories when you get back too."
Somehow that filled Misty's eye with even more of a tear than James' ones had. She knew that it took a lot for her father to get over his pride and his past and say something complimentary or mildly affectionate towards another male. But he had done it for her. And she appreciated that. She appreciated it even more when both of the boys stood back after letting go of their boats to let her have a moment with hers. Needless to say, I didn't hesitate to join them and while they stood behind her and stood shoulder to shoulder, I perched on them both so I had one paw on each of them. I loved them.
As the orange haired female was approaching the ocean with the boat, she suddenly felt very emotional. She had a lump in her throat. But it was a good kind. It was a lovely kind. She looked back at Jordan and James behind her.
Ash wasn't there in person but they had made sure that he was there on the last day of the summer festival. She appreciated them for that. And she appreciated her raven haired husband more than she'd ever be able to say. But she hoped she would be able to summarise it somewhat with her next words.
She held onto the boat lantern in her hands for a good few moments before she finally let it go. Unlike the men who had gone before her, she said the words as she pushed the ornament out into the ocean. She whispered her words into the breeze. She whispered the words just for the wind. She whispered the words just for Ash. I wish that he had heard them. In fact, I wish that he had heard them all. But he would get to understand them eventually. In fact, he would in the not so distant future.
"Ash…" Misty began and she shook her head. How was she going to sum up everything that she felt for the love of her life? Well, she just had to try. So she tried. And she succeeded too.
"You are my best friend. We danced at this little festival for the first time twenty years ago today and in that moment, I didn't know it but there would be a time that would only ever want my dances to be with you. Even though you're not here, you are here. This little lantern is for you. It's for the sprits too but it's mostly for you. Our love story may not be told for generations to come but it's perfect to me. You're perfect to me. You are my soldier. Thank you, Ash. Thank you for lighting up my life way more than all of these lanterns possibly could. Just, thank you. For lighting up my life ever since the day that we met."
The End.
There you go! Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed :3 I think this story is quite important actually, even though it's a bit of fun as well. It certainly shows the other side of Jordan and how energetic and free he can be. It shows his bond with James as well and I don't think I've portrayed that too heavily as of yet, even though it's very developed in my mind! It also shows James being a bit more affectionate towards Ash but it's still to other people rather than directly to him. And of course, it shows how Misty feels about Ash. Like Jordan said, they wouldn't go back to Maiden's Peak if it wasn't for him all those years ago so in a way, Ash was the beginning of everything for everyone :3 Thanks again and I will be back next week for the final chapter of the Pikachu Tales PokeShipping Month fics so see you then!
AmyBieberKetchum signing out :P