She woke up on the cold, damp floor, hands tied. Her vision was hazy, head throbbing with every second that passed. The monotonous whirring of an air conditioning unit droned above her, causing chills to circulate throughout her body. Looking around her, she noticed she was in a small room, with no light coming in other than a window, seemingly mocking her in her state of imprisonment. Squinting, she noticed there were bars in front of her too, expanding the length of the room. A door in the right corner opened, letting light in, as well as two figure's shadows. Heels clicked against the concrete floor as one of the figures came closer to the bars that separated them..
"Well, well, well. If it isn't Misty Waterflower. I'm honestly not surprised you ended up here, with your big mouth and all." a woman's voice said in the darkness. Misty couldn't see anything other than a faint outline. She looked tall, holding her hands on her hips.
" You guys are horrible people! Who would do that to innocent Pokemon?" Misty screamed.
"We need a way to run the city. And what's better than Pokemon for the job?" a raspy voice croaked, the shadow hanging near the door.
Both of them stepped into the dim light, and Misty realized they were… Cassidy and Butch? Cassidy's blond hair was styled in two ponytails, her pink earrings dangling off her ears. She wore a wicked smile, her eyes filled with malice. Butch wore a content expression, crossing his arms tightly against his chest. Dressed in Team Rocket attire, Cassidy stood confidently, holding a dark purple Pokeball in her hand.
"You see this? This is Pikachu's Pokeball. Yes, Ash's Pikachu." she added, after noticing Misty's confused expression.
"What have you done to him?" she screamed, tears in the corners of her eyes. Ash had been heartbroken at giving Pikachu to the government, afraid of what they'd do to him. It seems his worst fears had been confirmed.
"Nothing much." she said, turning around and walking away, Butch following.
"Oh, and Misty? Watch your mouth. You're putting more than yourself in danger." she said, walking out of the door, Butch closing it behind him.
The words seemed to linger in the stuffy air, their impact spreading over Misty like a wave, Misty, realizing what she'd done, let out a small gasp. She hadn't thought twice about saying what she had, letting her temper get the better of her once again. But she hadn't thought of the consequences further than this. She had once again put Ash in danger unknowingly.
"Oh, Ash, please be ok." she prayed.
(FLASHBACK)
"Hey Misty!" Ash said, walking into the former Pokemon Gym. He wore a cocky grin, brown eyes glinting with a hint of playfulness. He shut the door behind him, his messy black hair still tucked under a hat.
"Mist?" Ash added, seeing what was in front of him. Misty was crumpled in a heap on the ground, leaning against the wall. Small sobs escaped her mouth, hands covering her eyes.
"Ash…" she whispered, looking up for a minute. Her eyes were red and puffy, cheeks streaked with tears, still pouring down from her gorgeous blue eyes.
Ash kneeled down next to her, tucking her flaming red hair behind her ears before sitting down.
"What's wrong, Myst?" he asked concernedly.
"I can't keep doing this. The Pokemon…"
"Myst, I know it's hard. But we can't do anything."
"One Azumarill.. It-it-died." she choked out, sobs pouring out again. Ever since Gyms had turned into power centers, Misty's job was to have the Pokemon produce power through treadmills. Misty hated her job, hating to see Pokemon get mistreated while she could do nothing.
"I'm so sorry, Misty. None of them deserve this."
"Team Rocket, they're horrible. Pokemon and people are suffering. It's not fair! I wish they would go to hell!" she said, anger bubbling up inside her.
"Misty!" Ash yelped, "The cameras are gonna pick up on you!"
"I don't care anymore, Ash! They can take me! Just stop hurting these innocent Pokemon!" she said, collapsing into more sobs.
"Oh, Misty," Ash said, letting her head lay on his shoulder, "What would I do without you then?"
She sniffed, giving a small chuckle.
"I promise you, we'll do something to stop them. For you. For me. For
Pikachu." he said somberly.
"And I'll be with you, every step of the way." she whispered.
(END FLASHBACK)
But now she couldn't. And it was all her fault.